Irreversible Punishment
by Geishaaa
Summary: "When Central 46 discovers that a child has been born from two parents with high spiritual pressure, they order what is known as the 'Irreversible Punishment'…" The Tenth Division leaders are forced to reckon with the horrors of their past, of things they had long forgotten, and deal with the consequences. Rangiku, Toshiro FAMILY.
1. Yoruichi's Secret

**Okay so… bit of a different story compared to what I usually write. This is a Toshiro and Rangiku FAMILY story; this Toshiro is younger than in the cannon, physically (also mentally) 10 years old, so if you like cute!Tosh, this is for you. I've wanted to write this story for a long time, so I hope you'll like it xD**

 **WARNINGS: minor spoilers for the later manga chapters, mostly incorrect facts, a touch of violence aaaannndd some mature themes.**

…

 **Irreversible Punishment**

 **Chapter One: Yoruichi's Secret**

 _Yoruichi Shihoin took a deep breath. She was the Commander of the Stealth Force and she was under direct orders from Central Forty-Six; she had no choice. At least that's what she told herself as she signalled to her subordinates to circle around the house, leaving no escape for the two souls inside…not that they'd be able to flee from the flash goddess herself, or the twelve highly competent Punishment Force ninjas she'd selected for this mission. She could feel the spiritual pressures of her two (still unaware) victims inside the run down cottage – powerful but raw; untrained and ignorant of the power they possess._

" _Commander Shihoin," one of her masked subordinates dropped to his knee beside her._

" _Report."_

" _The premise is surrounded, and the kido barrier complete. So far, both beings remain oblivious to our presence."_

 _Yoruichi gave a firm nod as the ninja stood and returned to his post. Everything had gone according to plan – although she wished it hadn't. Over her many years in this position, as well as her role as Captain of the Second Division, she had been ordered to complete many unspeakable tasks, and she had carried out this particular operation a couple of times, but now the guilt of her actions was beginning to take its toll. Yoruichi was – for the most part – a popular woman in the Seireitei with friends everywhere who loved her for her cheekiness and her outgoing nature, but during these darker moments in her leadership, she had learnt to detach herself emotionally as not to develop feelings that may hinder her from the task at hand. This time was different, however, as she felt a heavy weight in her chest; it was getting harder and harder for her to carry on serving Central Forty-Six, whom were becoming corrupt and ruthless, and constantly paranoid about 'threats' to the Soul Society, leading them to make harsh and unyielding decisions._

 _Her loyalty came first though, and she had a job to do._

" _Let's move."_

 _The commander and her twelve chosen underlings closed in around the small house silently. The buildings occupants wouldn't sense them, partially because they were reining in their spiritual pressures and also because the targets were untrained themselves and wouldn't know how to sense them._

 _Yoruichi glanced back at her officers standing beneath the midnight sky and signalled for them to remain in their positions; they were only here as back up should something go wrong, which was highly unlikely in this situation, but necessary under the rules she'd established long ago for similar operations. Noiselessly, the Commander of the Stealth Force slipped through the open window and landed in a crouched position on the wooden floorboards of the old cottage, quieter than any feline. From her place in the dark, she could hear the happy giggles of a young toddler and the soft coos of the child's mother._

 _A baby and its' mother; Yoruichi Shihoin's two new victims, and the supposed 'threats' to the Soul Society._

…

Toshiro Hitsugaya stood silently in his appointed place between Captain Kyoraku and Captain Kurotsuchi and their respective lieutenants, while his own vice-captain chirped happily with their friends at the Eighth from her place behind him. The atmosphere in the First Division meeting hall was somewhat upbeat – as it often was when the lieutenants were invited; they seemed to get along better than most of the Captains and many were loud and talkative – but Toshiro knew it wouldn't last long.

The purpose of the combined meeting was to discuss the future of Central Forty-Six, whose previous members were killed by Aizen all those months ago. With the Winter War behind them; the Seireitei was now in the process of recovering; buildings finally got fixed, vacant captain and lieutenant positions were gradually filled and now it was time to re-instate the political branch of the Soul Society. However, there were many captains who believed that Central Forty-Six had become ineffective and corrupt, and thus, with the permission of the Soul King, the Head Captain called the current meeting.

Right on cue, the ancient First Division leader took his seat at the front of the room and banged his staff hard against the wooden floorboards, immediately silencing the room and forcing everyone in attendance to stand that little bit straighter. Despite the old man's age and often slow physical movements, all captains and lieutenants were aware of the power he possessed and that was enough to pull them into line.

"Today, I call upon the captains and the lieutenants of all thirteen divisions to discuss the fate of Central Forty-Six," Yamamoto droned, his voice stern with authority, "This meeting will be conducted like a trial, as we will assess their past actions and judge whether those actions have been just and effective. I have invited former Captain of the Second, and former Commander in Chief of the Stealth Force, Yoruichi Shihoin, to provide information from her time working under Central Forty-Six."

All eyes turned towards the back of the room to the purple-haired woman and a few people gave her a small wave, namely Soi Fon and the other ladies of the SWA. Yoruichi herself kept her facial features impassive as she gave a curt nod to the Head Captain. Toshiro had to wonder what the former noble woman's opinion on the whole matter was; she had, after all, served directly under the political branch as the Stealth Force leader for many decades, and would know better than anyone how they operated and what secret affairs went on within those dark chambers.

Toshiro himself was fairly torn over the issue. On one hand, he knew that the Soul Society would need some sort of governing body and that Central Forty-Six had been designed to work unbiasedly in the best interests of all citizens, but on the other hand, in practice, Central Forty-Six had not lived up to their principles, and he'd been burned by them before. They'd forced him to duel his best – and only – friend to the death without considering any other possible solutions. That was Central Forty-Six in a nutshell really; they wanted the best for the Soul Society but were narrow-minded and firm in their decisions. There was also evidence to suggest that they tended to favour the noble clans over the residents living in the Rukon districts, which had led to startling inequality under the law.

"Captain Soi Fon," The Head Captain continued, "As the current Commander of the Stealth Force, please share any information you have on the matter."

The petite woman with short, dark hair stepped forward in order to be seen. There was a faint blush on her cheeks – probably brought on by Yoruichi's presence – before the usually stoic Squad Two Captain launched into her report.

Soi Fon discussed her history of working under Central Forty-Six, and the various tasks and operations she was asked to carry out. Some of them seemed rather irrational or extreme given the scenario, such as the (thankfully now banned) Spirit Sealing Pits in which unarmed 'criminals' were thrown into a pit lined with Sekkiseki – a rock that drains spiritual power – alone with a hollow as a means of execution. She continued, saying that this form of punishment was discontinued as it was deemed barbaric, but had operated for many years previous to her leadership. Toshiro thought he saw a mild flinch from Yoruichi at the mention of the old sentence; she'd probably had to oversee that punishment a few times.

As it turned out, most of the captains had a story or two to tell in regards to their experiences with Central Forty-Six, and none of them were pretty. If they had something to say, they stepped forward – in no particular order – and gave their blunt opinions.

Kurotsuchi was still bitter over his time spent in the Maggot's Nest, believing his incarceration was 'ridiculous and unjust', which started up a whole argument over the harshness of Central Forty-Six's penalties for crime.

It was often rare for people to agree with the insane scientist captain, but the Captains of the Sixth and Thirteenth did just that, bringing up the sentence that Rukia Kuchiki – who'd finally made it to a lieutenant position in her squad – was given for her two charges; overstaying the time limit in the World of the Living and for transferring her powers to a human, i.e. Ichigo Kurosaki. Toshiro did have to agree on that one too, Rukia had certainly not deserved a death sentence.

The recently re-instated Captain Shinji Hirako of Squad Five then made the point that Central Forty-Six would often overlook the details of why the crime was committed, and skipped straight to the punishment, which was how he and the other visoreds ended up being treated like hollows, even though they'd gained their hollow powers unwillingly.

Kenpachi Zaraki then added – rather gruffly – that the 'old buggers' were irrational like that, since they had order the Head Captain to cease his Zanjutsu training as they were 'piss-assed scared' that he'd become unstoppable, which to them was a threat should the man ever try to revolt against the Soul Society. Toshiro had to frown at that; Zaraki was a monster but he didn't seem like the type to try and overthrow the Seireitei. He was simple and happy fighting hollows or whoever else was dumb enough to challenge him – he had no motivation to rebel.

Captain Kyoraku stepped forward last to announce his distaste for the governing body of the Soul Society. He'd, _unsurprisingly_ , had a few runs with Central Forty-Six in the past. Most notably, during the whole Reigai debacle, Central Forty-Six (the temporary council set up post Aizen's betrayal) had falsely accused him of altering the Dangai records. Shunsui also provided them with another anecdote of the Central Forty-Six's role in the death of his sister-in-law, also his lieutenant's mother, who was executed for misplacing a sacred artefact; the zanpakuto of House Ise, Shinken Hakkyoken. Toshiro watched with a grave expression as Rangiku placed a hand on her friend Nanao's back; the memory of her deceased mother bringing up old, buried emotions.

Deciding to keep quiet and not bring up the Kusaka incident – since most of them were aware of his history in that particular area – Toshiro stood silently. It seemed that very few of the captains actually wanted the Central Forty-Six re-instated to its former glory. Despite Soi Fon's early presentation, the Second Division Captain was actually in support of them, believing that the legislative authority just needed some minor tweaks. Captain Unohana and Captain Komamura had so far remained silent on the issue, as well as the recently promoted Captain Shuuhei Hisagi. Squad Three remained leader-less, however Lieutenant Izuru Kira had not spoken on his division's behalf.

"Very well, if no one else has anything to contribute…" Yamamoto called formally, "Yoruichi Shihoin, you have the floor."

The former Shihoin princess stayed silent for a minute, looking around the room before shifting uncomfortably on her feet. Toshiro did not know the woman well, encountering her only a few times since her return during the Ryoka invasion, but was certain that this was out of character for the normally confident and decisive woman.

"If you re-instate Central Forty-Six…." The woman eventually drawled out slowly as she measured every word before she said it, "You'll be making the biggest mistake of your life."

A beat of silence passed before quiet murmurs erupted around the meeting hall, as the rooms occupants tried to riddle out the purple-haired former captain's vague response.

"Silence!" The old man yelled, banging his staff three times in succession. The noise of the room came to an abrupt stop, "Please justify your response, Yoruichi."

Out of the corner of his eye, Toshiro could see Rangiku throwing Yoruichi a confidence-boosting thumbs up and an encouraging nod. Yoruichi returned a pained half-smile in response. Toshiro frowned; _something was wrong_.

"Under the direct orders of Central Forty-Six, I was forced to carry out a number of terrible tasks," Yoruichi answered, "You all wonder why I could so easily abandon the Seireitei, well they were the reason why…"

...

 _Yoruichi crept towards the door; her feet silently moving across the wooden floor of the old cottage. Light filtered in through the slim gap of the open door, and the echoes of the bubbly baby grew louder as she neared it. The light disappeared behind her shadow as she pressed her eye to the ajar door and peaked into the main room of the cottage._

 _A young mother sat on a blanket in the centre of the room. She had shoulder length strawberry blonde hair, a naturally beautiful face and a well-endowed chest. The woman was cradling the child against her chest and humming a soft tune. The child looked to be a toddler, no older than eighteen months, and was wide awake, its' little fists tugging at the mother's robes. The toddler was wearing an oversized jumper, with the hood up over its' head, so Yoruichi was still unclear as to what the kid looked like, other than its physical size._

" _Mum," the child called, "Mama."_

 _The mother smiled and cooed at her child, hushing the toddler and continuing her humming, probably in an effort to get the baby back to sleep._

" _Shush, little one, go to sleep now,"_

 _Yoruichi felt a pang in her chest; this was her mission, to destroy this happy little family._

 _..._

"Could you give us an example?"

This time it was the gentle voice of the healer captain, Retsu Unohana, which poised the question. Her eyes were soft and caring. Unohana tended to play mother whenever she felt it was called for, to comfort injured soldiers or lonely new recruits. Yachiru sometimes even called her 'Mother', much to her adoptive father's embarrassment. Toshiro himself had never seen her as a mother figure to him; _sure_ , she was warm and compassionate but she wasn't _his_ mother. He didn't have a mother, having been found wandering the streets of Junrinan alone by the old woman he now called 'Granny'.

"No," Yoruichi said firmly.

The room was silent as they processed the fact that the former commander of the Stealth Force had just blatantly refused to co-operate. Toshiro couldn't decide if the woman was brave for standing her ground or just plain stupid. No one refused Unohana, and certainly no one declined the Head Captain…or at least, nobody had done so and survived to talk about it.

"Is this about those two girls again?" Soi Fon intervened, "Lady Yoruichi, it was a long time ago; I don't think Central Forty-Six even cares about that any more. I haven't been asked to carry out a task like that since I took over from you."

"They care," Yoruichi hissed, glaring at her former second in command, "It just hasn't happened since you took over."

Soi Fon inhaled sharply, taking a timid step back, looking as though she'd just been slapped across the face. Thick tension filled the room; no one had been expecting the sudden hostility radiating from the ex-captain.

"Yoruichi Shihoin," Captain Yamamoto called sternly, "You have been brought here to provide information on the Central Forty-Six's activities and to make a proper decision, we must have all the details. Now, explain yourself."

Yoruichi stood in her place, her lips locked firmly shut, arms crossed over her chest and shaking her head. Eventually, Soi Fon answered – rather nervously – on her behalf.

"We are all aware of the law that states that two souls with high spiritual pressures are forbidden to conceive a child together – unless they are of a noble clan – out of fear that the child will become a powerful threat in the future," Soi Fon stated, addressing the room, "What you would not know is what Central Forty-Six does to those who break that law."

Uncomfortable glances were exchanged about the room; Central Forty-Six were famous for their harsh punishments. Yoruichi visibly flinched at the remark, causing Toshiro's curiosity to peak; just what had affected the fierce former captain so much?

The topic made him feel a little uncomfortable too, however, as he often wondered if he was the offspring of two powerful souls. It was often suggested by Captain Kurotsuchi, who hated Toshiro beyond reason and would happily see his demise, although no one else had ever taken it seriously.

"Lady Yoruichi was never comfortable with carrying out the punishment," Soi Fon continued, "When Central Forty-Six discovers that a child has been born from two parents with high spiritual pressure, they order what is known as the 'Irreversible Punishment'; the child is executed, while the parents are wiped of their memories and sterilised."

A number of gasps echoed throughout the room and Toshiro felt Rangiku grip onto his haori tightly. She always did this when she was shocked about something, whether it be good or bad, and he was within grabbing range. She'd instinctively pull him close; it was her maternal nature kicking in, he assumed, she'd always tried to mother him. He tended to let her get away with it, mostly because she would just do it anyway, but also because part of him liked it. Sometimes there was nothing more he'd want other than to climb onto her lap and fall asleep to her soft humming and gentle, loving touches. Of course, he'd never actually done that on his own accord, but he was not opposed to pretending to be asleep in her presence, which almost always resulted in her picking him up for a cuddle. He usually felt pretty pathetic afterwards though; he was a captain, _for goodness sake_ , he should not need to be cuddled by his mother hen of a lieutenant.

Unohana had no motherly effect on him, but Rangiku had it in spades.

"There have only been two known cases in the time I've been in the Stealth Force," Soi Fon continued, "Yes, it was cruel, but it was the ruling of Central Forty-Six and it was our job to carry it out."

"Yoruichi, is this correct?" The Head Captain looked down at the tanned woman at the back of the room.

Yoruichi hung her head and closed her eyes; a small nod her only answer.

"You're lying," Yamamoto responded gently, his voice low and grave, "There is more to it, I can tell. You worked for me too, remember? I know you, now answer me; what happened that made you want to leave the Soul Society so much?"

It was weird how Yamamoto could alter between strict Head Captain and fatherly figure, or grandfatherly as Toshiro saw it. Whichever the term, it seemed to have an effect on the former commander turned cat enthusiast, who raised her head to meet his eye.

"There was another case where I was ordered to carry out the 'Irreversible Punishment', only months before I left with Kisuke Urahara," She began, "A little boy. I will never forget the fear in his eyes."

...

 _Yoruichi sighed internally, it was time._

 _She muttered a quick kido spell and knocked the mother unconscious. The strawberry blonde woman slumping backwards onto the floor, her child sliding out of her arms and landing softly next to her. The toddler stood on shaky feet, poking its mother in the cheek and calling for her; confused by the game it thought she was playing._

 _Yoruichi stepped out of the dark adjoining room into the well-lit main space of the house._

" _Hello, little one," She had tried to sound upbeat and cheerful, as not to scare the young child._

 _The toddler turned sharply to face her. It was a boy with large, expressive eyes; small for his age, but healthy. The boy tugged on his mother's night shirt, but the woman did not rouse. Yoruichi took a few more small steps forward, reaching out a gentle hand to the boy. The toddler's eyes were full of fear as he crouched by his mother's unmoving form; terrified by the strange woman in his home. Yoruichi was surprised that the boy hadn't run for it yet, as the girls in the previous cases had. This boy refused to leave his mother's side, but whether it was because he thought she could help him or because he wanted to protect her, Yoruichi did not know. Unprotected and alone, the boy's voice shook as he called out once more for his mother._

 _..._

"You killed that little boy?"

It was Rangiku who had asked the question, her fists tightening in Toshiro's uniform and a look of pure horror on her face; Rangiku had a soft spot for children.

"No," Yoruichi admitted quietly, "I thought that if I just erased his memory, and bound his powers, then Central Forty-Six would never know I'd let him go…"

"And they believed you?" Kyoraku asked, eyebrows raised.

"They were suspicious," Yoruichi answered with a half-shrug, "But I know they never found out the truth."

"The boy is still alive then?" Rangiku beamed happily.

Yoruichi nodded, but expanded no further on the boy in question's current whereabouts or activity.

"What about the parents?" Lieutenant Kotetsu of Squad Four asked, frowning.

"The father was never charged," Yoruichi swallowed, "But the mother was punished as per the order. I altered her memory so that she would never know she had a child, and then I-"

"-Sterilised her?" Unohana interjected, her voice almost accusing.

Yoruichi gave a slow solemn nod, "She didn't deserve that."

The feline-like woman's voice cracked a little on that last note, and Toshiro had a feeling that they'd pushed too far. The story seemed only half complete though, so he had a feeling there was worse news to come.

"Why wasn't the father charged?" Nanao asked, frowning and pushing up her glasses, "That seems a little sexist."

"The father was the one who turned his family in, and Central Forty-Six rewarded him with a pardon and an unofficial warning that wouldn't go on his record," Yoruichi explained, her voice becoming bitter and hateful, "He was a high-ranked Soul Reaper at the time, and didn't want to risk losing his position, _apparently."_

There was an immediate uproar amongst the more vocal soul reapers in the room; each and every one of them loudly shaming the father who'd turned his own lover and child over to Central Forty-Six, all the while knowing that his innocent son would be executed.

"Who would do such a thing?"  
"What scumbag hates his own child enough to have them killed?"  
"That monster…"

"Enough!" Yamamoto roared, "Who was the father?"

Yoruichi froze, her body tensing up visibly and she took a step back.

"I can't…" She said, "I won't."

"You will," The Head Captain demanded, back into his stern, unyielding mode, "Who was the father?!"

"Gin Ichimaru," Yoruichi blurted out, as the temperature of the room dramatically increased.

Rangiku inhaled sharply behind him, and Toshiro shifted uncomfortably, but not because of the heat. Gin Ichimaru was the bane of Toshiro's existence; the man was evil and twisted, and took pleasure in trying to make Toshiro's daily life a living hell. Rangiku, however, was in love with the man – making it even more awkward for him – and still grieved his death. Oddly enough, it was Rangiku who had killed Gin in the end, after he had attacked Toshiro and almost won. The silver-haired traitor hadn't been expecting her to taking her captain's side against his, and therefore was shocked to find himself skewered by her Haineko. Toshiro was glad that she'd picked him over that man, but sometimes he wondered if she regretted it; she sure did cry a lot about it.

Many of the eyes in the room turned to face them too; many knew of the relationship Rangiku held with the fox-faced traitor and it was often suggested – again, by Kurotsuchi mostly – that Toshiro himself held a number of traits similar to those of Gin's; child prodigy, genius, similar hair colour…

"The child…" Yamamoto murmured just loud enough to be heard across the room, mental clogs ticking over one at a time as his eyes left Toshiro's and returned to Yoruichi, "You said you bound his powers?"

"I said I was going to," Yoruichi's voice shook as she answered, her hands wringing nervously together, "But he got away."

"A mere child escaped you?" questioned Byakuya Kuchiki, disbelief written across his features, "The Commander in Chief of the Stealth Force and a Soul Reaper Captain?"

Yoruichi nodded, her head hung in shame, and slowly she confessed…

...

 _The boy lay unconscious beside his mother as Yoruichi finished up sterilising the woman. The toddler had been more a problem than she thought, and she'd had to hit him with a weak kido spell to get him to stop struggling so she could focus on the woman. Sterilising was difficult work; it involved a number of difficult and intricate spells – most of which were forbidden in any other circumstances – designed to injure someone from the inside and leaving no traces on the skin. When done properly, the woman's uterus would be scarred; she'd still get light periods but would never be able to hold a baby in there again. After the damage was done, Yoruichi would use a light healing kido to take away the pain; the mother would never know it had happened._

 _Altering the memory was next. Not many people knew you could actually pull out someone's memory from their head, but Yoruichi's friend Kisuke had learnt how to with his dabbling in forbidden kido. Yoruichi first pulled the memory out of the toddler boy; a glowing white orb sat in Yoruichi's hand and when she looked close enough, she could see flashes from the boy's memory. Recent images of Yoruichi herself looming above him passed over the orb and the Commander had to cringe; he'd been utterly terrified, and rightly so. Moving on to the mother, Yoruichi muttered the spell again, pulling out a dark grey orb – like ash – out of the strawberry blonde woman's temple._

 _With the boy's memory, she simply just pulled it out and that was it; the boy was a baby, he wouldn't even realise it was gone, the only thing Yoruichi left behind was his given name – he deserved to remember that much. The mother, however, would notice if roughly two years of her life had simply vanished, so Yoruichi's job was to alter the memory – to make it child-less – and then give it back to her. Well actually, she had to make a copy first because altering the original memory was too risky, but a mere copy would prove less disastrous, especially if she made a mistake. With more complicated kido, she made the secondary ash globe and managed to erase all memories of the child; the whole memory would be the same in every other aspect, for example, the mother would remember coming to this cottage and sitting alone, but there would be no child in her thoughts. Yoruichi then pocketed both original memories and returned the fake memories to the mother._

 _Well, that was one half of her job done, Yoruichi sighed, glancing over at the sleeping toddler. She scooped the boy up into her arms; he was so small. With one last sad look at the unconscious mother, Yoruichi turned and flash stepped from the house, stopping briefly to send her subordinates into the home to remove all the evidence of a child, including toys, clothes, milk bottles, and anything else that belonged to the toddler; she'd deal with the child alone._

 _Another thing Urahara had taught her was how to permanently bind someone's spiritual power. Derived from the binding spells that locked criminals in the Maggot's Nest, Urahara developed a serum that when injected what seal whatever powers that individual might possess and cut off any connection they have with their zanpakuto spirit, should they have one. It was permanent, however a much less cruel alterative to killing a child._

 _Landing in abandoned woodland, Yoruichi looked down at the boy in her arms. He began to stir, and cracked a large eye open. A few seconds went by in silence as the boy lay staring up at Yoruichi uncomprehendingly; he wouldn't remember her._

 _But then the boy cried._

 _The toddler began to panic, squirming in Yoruichi's arms and crying loudly under the midnight sky. There was no soul within two miles, nobody to hear him. As the boy's distress grew and Yoruichi's shushing went unnoticed, the Stealth Force Commander suddenly began to feel cold. It was the middle of summer, and yet she could feel the temperature around her begin to plummet rapidly. Looking around, Yoruichi saw ice creeping around the grass at her feet, and on the tree's standing around her. The sky became dark as the moon and stars were lost behind dark, angry clouds. Rain started to fall; lightly first, but gradually building up to a hammering force that was almost painful on the tanned woman's skin. Ducking under a now frozen tree, Yoruichi didn't have to look far to find the cause of the sudden freak weather; her tiny captive was glowing white, like a livid soul reaper preparing to destroy their opponent. The difference was that this boy had no training, no control, just raw power. And it was terrifying._

 _Especially when the rain turned to hail, and then to heavy snow._

 _Yoruichi dropped the child when her own arms began to ice over. She fell back against the tree holding her arms to her chest. They were so cold it actually burnt. The child got to his feet, still screaming and crying, before turning on his heel and running as fast as his little legs could carry him. Yoruichi was frozen – for lack of a better term – as her legs cramped up in the cold and she remained paralysed against the tree. She could see the boy getting away, but in this freak snow storm, there was little she could do. The boy tripped, falling flat onto his face. As he stood, the hood over his head fell back, revealing a head of thick, snow white locks. Yoruichi's breath hitched as he turned to give her one last look before running off again. She knew then that she'd never forget those startling teal eyes._

 _..._

Several beats of silence passed over the First Division meeting hall.

Yoruichi was now in tears.

Rangiku too, when she'd realised the implication of the former captain's tale.

Toshiro inhaled sharply, taking a sudden step back. This couldn't be happening. It was a lie, it was a mistake; he was not the little boy, he was not Gin Ichimaru's son. His lieutenant's hands gripped him tightly from behind. He could feel her underside of her breasts brushing against his crown, but embarrassment was the last thing on his mind.

"No," He whispered, choking a little, "It's not…no, I-"

"Yoruichi, you're not…" Ukitake stumbled over his words, "Are you sure?"

"Yes," The purple-haired woman wiped her eyes, "I'll never forget that spiritual pressure and I felt it again when I returned to the Soul Society with Ichigo Kurosaki. I found that little boy fighting against his own father as Captain of the Tenth."

Toshiro took another step back, and then some more, slipping out of Rangiku's grasp before finding himself backed against the wall, all eyes on him. It was getting harder for him to breathe.

"I'm not his son," Toshiro denied, shaking his head, "He isn't my father."

Rangiku followed him, gripping his wrists and pulling him into her hold. He fisted her robes and shook violently, his head pressed into her stomach. It was a mistake, it wasn't true.

"Well, I called it," Captain Kurotsuchi's voice echoed happily throughout the hall, "I guess we'll have to execute him now; illegally born, son of a traitor…You know what, on second thought, we should re-instate Central Forty-Six-"

"No!" Rangiku screamed at the mad scientist before turning towards the Head Captain, "You can't! He's innocent, he's just a boy!"

"Enough!" Yamamoto called, "Captain Kurotsuchi, keep your opinions to yourself; that is a warning. Lieutenant Matsumoto, please keep your outbursts contained. I think you should take your captain and return to your division while we sort this out."

"Actually, Sir…" Unohana's calm voice radiated from the top of the room, "I think Captain Hitsugaya should first find out his mother's identity…although I'm sure most of us can guess."

Toshiro raised his head out from his Lieutenant's uniform to look questioning at the healer captain; _of course,_ he had two parents. From Yoruichi's story, his mother seemed to love him and care for him, until… He felt his blood beginning to boil, Yoruichi had hurt his mother and split up their little family, and she'd done it under the orders of Central Forty-Six.

"Very well," Yamamoto responded, "Yoruichi Shihoin, please tell Captain Hitsugaya who his mother is… He deserves to know that much."

Yoruichi turned to look at him, and Toshiro realised it was the first time they'd ever made eye contact… Well, the first time in his memory. Her feline-like eyes were still teary, filled with guilt and regret. He didn't care about her feelings, though; they wouldn't change the past.

"I'm so sorry," Yoruichi said, her voice breaking before she looked over his shoulder.

She was looking at Rangiku.

"I'm sorry, Ran," She cried, "I'm sorry, I should have told you the truth, but when I saw you defending him against Gin…and then I found out you were his lieutenant… I just-I couldn't. I justified it, thinking that, despite everything, you were still his mother anyway…"

There was silence.

Toshiro's body tensed. Rangiku released him; her face screwing up in horror. She took a step towards Yoruichi.

"You're saying that I'm his birth mother?" Rangiku questioned her as tears rolled down her cheeks, "You're saying that I'm his mother and you took him away from me? You stole my memory and took away my ability to have any more children?!"

She was screaming now; Toshiro had only heard that tone in her voice once and that had been when she killed Ichimaru during the Winter War. It was so full of fury that Toshiro dared not move. He still couldn't believe his lieutenant was his mother. He'd always wished it, but now that it was happening, he wasn't so sure it was a good thing. Rangiku was livid, so maybe she agreed, and that hurt.

"We became friends and you knew but never told me!" Rangiku continued to shout and take sinister steps toward the former commander, "We were friends!"

Yoruichi was backing up too, trying to apologise but it was falling on deaf ears.

Toshiro found himself taking a step towards his lieutenant…towards his mother. He was stopped, however, by a strong arm that curled around his chest and pulled him back. Teal eyes met those of Captain Kyoraku, who hugged him close.

"Stay back, Toshiro," He whispered, "She's just in shock."

Kyoraku – like Ukitake – had always been somewhat of an uncle figure to him. Ukitake was the nice, warm, helpful uncle, and Kyoraku was the drunk one, telling inappropriate jokes he didn't fully understand, and Rangiku would always cover his ears anyway. They used to have big dinners together, when Captain Shiba was around, and Lieutenant Ise would join them and so would Kaien Shiba and his wife before they died. These days, Toshiro had no time for those ridiculous dinners, and most of the time it was Rangiku and Kyoraku getting wasted, while Ukitake tried to give him copious amounts of candy.

Toshiro suddenly felt his lieutenant's spiritual pressure rise; the room becoming hot again. He turned to see her in a fighting stance and pulling Haineko from its' sheath at her waist. Rangiku lunged for the former Stealth Force leader.

"Hado 31: Shakkaho!"

It was Soi Fon with the kido spell, she stepped out of line and shot it towards Rangiku, whose entire focus was on Yoruichi.

"No!" Toshiro belted, firing off his own kido to destroy Soi Fon's red light cannon.

If he wasn't being held back against Kyoraku's chest, he would have ripped Hyorinmaru from his sheath and froze the attack and anyone else who dared intervene, but since he only had his arms, the kido was his only choice. The kidos collided and exploded in the centre of the room, sending the closest people stumbling back a few steps from the sheer force. Neither Toshiro's nor Soi Fon's spells had been too strong as neither were intending to serious harm their targets; Soi Fon was probably just trying to knock Rangiku out. They were still captains however, and had their spells been any stronger, the collision could have destroyed the whole building.

Toshiro heard Kyoraku behind him uttering a quick kido spell himself, and suddenly Toshiro fell limp, his vision going grey and his body collapsing back into Kyoraku's warm embrace. He heard Rangiku scream his name – his first name, not his rank – before the world went black.

…

 _Rangiku sat by her captain's bedside in the Fourth Division, looking at the fragile form curled up in the sheets. A few hours ago, the boy had awoken from his short coma following Aizen's attack on him in the Central Forty-Six chambers, and was already back asleep. It wasn't his fault really; Unohana had pumped him full of painkillers, so he was bound to be fairly drowsy._

 _She raised her hand to gently brush a stray stand of hair out of his eyes. She'd always loved his hair; so thick and soft and stubbornly messy. The purest of whites, like the snow of his element. His eyes too, when they were open, were like beautiful teal orbs. Expressive; they conveyed every emotion he never let filter across his face. It had always amazed Rangiku how he could look so cute and innocent when he looked at her, and then dangerous and downright deadly when he looked at his opponents._

 _She let her hand fall to his cheek; smooth, pale and cool to touch. Toshiro murmured incoherently as he stirred, his face nuzzling into her hand. Smiling a little, Rangiku wondered how anyone could hurt the boy; he was just so adorable and innocent. Well, maybe not innocent anymore. He was a captain, and the wielder of the strongest ice-type zanpakuto in history; he'd always have enemies. Rangiku frowned. She would not let anyone hurt him; she would not let that happen. She'd fight her best friends if she had to; she'd fight Gin too if he ever tried to harm her little captain again._

 _..._

" _I'll protect you, Toshiro; you mean the world to me."_

Rangiku cracked open an eye. Bright light flooded her vision and she promptly shut her eye again and groaned; the light was making her newly discovered headache throb hard against her skull.

"Rangiku?" a voice called, "Ran, can you hear me?"

Rangiku rolled onto her side, recognising the familiar feel of her favourite office couch without needing to see it. She opened her eyes again, coming face to face with her friend Shunsui Kyoraku, Captain of the Eighth, who crouched beside her and looked at her through concerned eyes.

"Captain Kyoraku?" She asked, wondering what the man was doing in her division's office.

Suddenly, the memories came flooding back; the meeting, Yoruichi's guilt, her captain is actually her son, she attacked Yorui-

 _Toshiro was her son._

"Where is he?!" She sprung upright, no longer caring about the pounding in her head.

Kyoraku grabbed her shoulders firmly, and tried to push her back down, all the while shushing her and quietly begging her to stay calm.

"He's fine," He assured her in a hurried whisper, "He's okay, but I need you to calm down, Ran."

Rangiku took a couple of deep breaths as she tried to compose herself. Toshiro was her son. She was his mother. She had given birth to a baby…to Gin's baby. Her captain was her baby boy…

"Please, Shunsui," She asked in her calmest, most even tone, her eyes doing the begging, "Please, I need to see him."

Kyoraku looked her up and down, before sighing and releasing her shoulders. He stood up from his crouched position beside the couch and side-stepped out of the way. Behind him, on the couch opposite the one she was currently sitting on, lay her captain – her son – his eyes closed but his chest moving as he breathed steadily. Captain Ukitake sat at the other end of the couch, by Toshiro's feet. He wasn't wearing his haori, as it was currently being used as a blanket for the small body beside him. Rangiku slipped of the couch and crawled to Toshiro's side. _Her son…_

She raked her hand gently through his hair like she often did when he was asleep, sick, injured or sad.

"You knocked him out?" Rangiku asked Kyoraku without looking over her shoulder, her eyes remaining focused on the sleeping boy.

"I had to," Kyoraku replied evenly, "He was panicking."

"And who knocked me out?"

"That was me, actually," Nanao's voice called from the same direction as her captain's, "I'm sorry, Ran, but you just lost it and we didn't want Captain Soi Fon or anyone else stepping in."

Rangiku nodded; she had lost it. She'd been so consumed by her anger that she had openly attacked Yoruichi in front of all the current captains and lieutenants. The thought made her furious again; Yoruichi had become her good friend in the last few years. They regularly talked and went shopping together, drinking sometimes, or to the beach even. _They were friends_.

"What happens now?" Rangiku asked, glancing up at her three friends – Four actually, since Rukia was there too, hanging back silently behind Ukitake.

Kyoraku opened his mouth to respond, but Rangiku's attention was driven back to Toshiro when the boy released a soft groan. She continued to run her hands through his hair as he shifted, and slowly two teal irises came into view. Rangiku had to wonder where he got his eyes from, since hers were an icy blue and Gin's were a terrifying red. _Perhaps he got them from Hyorinmaru?_

"Matsumoto?" Toshiro mumbled groggily as he propped himself up on to his elbows and looked around the room.

The little captain frowned as his vision fell upon their guests, and pushed himself in to a sitting position. He glanced at Ukitake, who was smiling warmly back, and then down to the haori that had become his blanket. Toshiro sighed softly.

"Thanks," He murmured quietly, stripping the haori/blanket back and returning it to its owner.

"Are you feeling okay, Shiro?" Ukitake asked, accepting the haori and folding it on to his lap.

Toshiro nodded silently, although he looked like he was only just holding it together. Rangiku pushed herself off the floor and sat back down on Toshiro's other side. She rubbed his back, and braced herself for the conversation that they were about to have. This had been a life altering moment for them; they were no longer captain and lieutenant, they were son and mother. She remembered back to the meeting when Toshiro had begun to panic upon finding out he was Gin's son, so she as unsure how he would feel about her being his mother.

He turned to look at her, his face emotionless and unreadable like it always was when he didn't want someone to know how he was truly feeling.

"You're my mother," He said, his voice soft but expressionless.

"And you're my son," She replied gently, giving a hint of smile.

Rangiku was still rubbing his back soothingly. He hadn't pushed her away or flinched at the contact, which was good news, because he rarely liked being touched as it was, and apparently this news hadn't broken his trust in her.

"What do we do?" He whispered, looking down at his lap while his hands played idly with the knot of his obi.

She wasn't sure what he meant by that; did he mean how were they going to work together, or perhaps he was confused as to how he was supposed to act around her now? She prayed it wasn't a question of how can they go back to how they were before. Rangiku didn't want to go back; she had a son now, and he was her little captain that she'd always cared for. She wanted to make up for lost time, and take her son into her arms and just hold him, just as she should have been doing for the last hundred years or so.

"You figure this out together."

All eyes turned to the doorway, where the Head Captain himself stood in all his power and glory. The long-sleeved haori swayed gently in the slight breeze of the open ended hallway and he held his staff-disguised zanpakuto in his two hands.

"Lieutenant Kuchiki," Yamamoto called gruffly as he entered the office and slowly came to stand in front of Rangiku and Toshiro, "Did you get in contact with the Kurosaki family?"

"Yes, Sir," Rukia nodded sharply as Yamamoto groaned lowering himself to sit on Rangiku's favourite sleeping couch, "Ichigo said it will be fine."

Yamamoto nodded his silent thanks and turned his attention to the two Squad Ten leaders, who sat silently staring with wide bug-eyes opposite him. Rangiku could not recall a time when the Head Captain had ever visited their division. In most cases, if he wanted to see one of them, they were summoned to his division.

"Captain Hitsugaya, Lieutenant Matsumoto," The old man sighed, pouring himself a cup of tea from the pot Rangiku hadn't even realised was on the coffee table between them, "I am very sorry to hear about the actions taken against you by Central Forty-Six. I promise you that I will do my very best to ensure nothing like this ever happens again. The law is unjust."

"Thank you, Sir," Rangiku bowed her head; at least he was on their side.

"The meeting to decide the outcome for Central Forty-Six has been temporarily postponed until further information is gathered," He informed them, "Until then, Yoruichi Shihoin has been asked to stay in the Seireitei to help. I understand that you may be mad at her, but I cannot punish her for simply doing her job. Your anger should be directed at Central Forty-Six, for it was under their orders that she operated."

Toshiro remained silent and impassive as ever. Rangiku clenched her jaw but stayed quiet; she was, after all, lucky to have been let off for attacking the former captain in the meeting hall.

"In the meantime," Yamamoto continued, sipping on his tea, "We have organised for the both of you to take a week's leave in the Human World. You two need a break from your duties, and time to sort out what this revelation will mean for your relationship. The Kurosaki's will house you for the week, and I am sure your former captain will look after the both of you in that time."

"You want us to go to the World of the Living?" Rangiku asked.

"Indeed, Lieutenant," The old man answered, "I think you both need to leave the Soul Society while we sort this out. Do not fret, there are many here with your best interests at heart, and they'll represent you at the meetings to the best of their abilities."

Rangiku glanced around the room to find her four friends nodding encouragingly to them. She nodded back, silently thanking them and showing her trust in them. Kyoraku and Ukitake held a lot of power as two of the most senior captains, and they'd have a heavy swing on the opinions of others.

"You may leave whenever you're ready," Yamamoto said, placing his now empty tea cup back onto the coffee table, "The Senkaimon will drop you inside the Kurosaki home, where your gigais await you. You will not have to go through Urahara's basement today."

Rangiku and Toshiro thanked him quietly. The old man nodded in return before slowly pulling himself up with the help of his staff, groaning loudly once again, and waddling over to the door. Toshiro suddenly wiggled out of his spot between Rangiku and Ukitake and quickly slid over to the Head Captain before he could open the office door. Yamamoto looked down at the young boy questioningly. The little prodigy opened his mouth to say something before promptly closing it again, seemingly undecided on how to say whatever it was that he was trying to.

"Sir, I – um – Are you…or them maybe, I – like Kurotsuchi said…" Toshiro stumbled on his words, obviously very unsure of himself and nervous too.

"Captain Hitsugaya, what do you need?" Yamamoto asked, placing a hand on the boy's narrow shoulder.

"Are you going to have me executed?" Toshiro blurted out quickly, his eyes wide and his voice a little shaky, "Or Matsumoto?"

The occupants of the room all stiffened in shock and horror. Rangiku's mouth went dry. No, they couldn't…they wouldn't…

Yamamoto frowned sadly, before pulling the boy to him, engulfing him in what was surely a rather warm embrace. From her seat on the couch, Rangiku could see her son's tiny hands clutching onto the old man's robes, his face buried in the dark folds. She knew that Toshiro saw the Head Captain as a grandfather-type figure, but also knew that some of that trust had been lost during the whole Kusaka incident. She could see where the boy's question had come from; it wouldn't have been the first order for his execution. Yamamoto must have realised it too, if they look of regret on his face was anything to go by.

"Of course not," The old man whispered as he stooped as low as possible to Toshiro's height, "I have let you down in the past, but I swear to you, _Toshiro_ , that neither you nor your mother will be harmed. Your jobs will still be here when you return next Monday, and I promise that I will never let anyone hurt you again. Do you understand, Toshiro?"

The small captain nodded, but did not let go. Yamamoto held him tightly before finding Rangiku's eyes and silently calling her over. Rangiku stood, making her way over to them, and placing her hands gently on her son's shoulders. Slowly she pulled him towards her and out of the Head Captain's embrace.

"Thank you, Sir," Toshiro whispered, as the elder captain ruffled his hair and turned to leave.

Rangiku continued to hold the boy by his shoulders as several beats of silence past following Yamamoto's departure.

"Rukia and I will help you pack," Nanao offered gently, and Rangiku turned to see Rukia nodding enthusiastically.

"Pack for me, Matsumoto," Toshiro murmured, shaking out of her old and walking towards the office door, "I will organise the squad to operate without us for the week. We'll leave from here in one hour."

The small boy didn't look back, slipping through the door way and vanishing down the corridor.

Rangiku sighed, she knew the signs of her captain closing himself off but she would not let it happen again. Once they were in the World of the Living, she would become his mother and they would have the relationship they were supposed to have.

…

 **Well…**

 **Firstly, I know you're all gonna be like 'You've written Yoruichi horribly! She's not that weak!' YASS I agree, I have done that, so ooops, but no – in all seriousness,** _ **of course**_ **she could have easily caught baby Tosh again, BUT she was in complete shock that a toddler tapped into his powers at such a young age and tbh, she didn't really want to catch him since she had no intention of killing him anyway. I hope this clears things up there and LONG LIVE QUEEN YORUICHI xoxo**

 **I'm super nervous, but please please PLEASE REVIEW xx**


	2. Reunited

**HOLA~~~**

 **Thank you to everyone who has reviewed! Here is chapter 2, I hope you all enjoy it xx**

 **O-Tree – Thank you so much for your long review! I really appreciate the lengthy ones xD I wanted to reply but since you reviewed as a guest, I'll just have to do it here, so hopefully you'll see this! I'm really glad you liked the first chapter and the thought it was well written xD You seriously know your canon well haaha, certainly better than me, but I've also changed a lot of details to fit this story, so hopefully that's okay by you! I know the meeting was a bit ranty but in all fairness, they had to express their views so they could make a proper decision, even if that meant being a little OOC for the more reserved captains. I really hope you enjoy the second chapter too xx**

…

Chapter 2: Reunited

" _Matsumoto," Toshiro called across the room, his voice stern, "Where have you been?"_

 _Rangiku beamed happily at him, skipping over to his desk and presenting him a bag. He scowled it, recognising the familiar logo instantly; it was from one of her favourite stores in the World of the Living. He didn't remember giving her permission to go there…_

" _What's this?" He asked, flicking the corner of it with wooden end of his ink brush, "Don't tell me you were shopping again?!"_

" _It's a scarf, Captain!" She announced, conspicuously ignoring the second question and holding a soft teal fabric out for his inspection, "I got it for you! See, it matches your eyes."_

 _Toshiro raised a questioning eyebrow. He was an ice-spirit and neither sought nor needed any protection from the cold, and surely his lieutenant would know this about him. Scarves were useless to him._

" _I know what you're thinking," the strawberry blonde woman continued, moving around behind his desk chair and wrapping the scarf loosely around his neck, "I just worry sometimes, with you spending all that time out in the freezing cold. Ice dragon or not, I won't have my little guy getting sick this winter."_

" _Little guy?" Toshiro hissed indignantly._

" _Yes, Captain," Rangiku laughed, running her fingers though his untamed white locks, "You might be one of the most powerful soul reapers in the Seireitei, but physically – whether you admit it or not – you are still very young."_

" _I'm not a child," He snapped, shaking his head away from her meddling hands._

" _Yes, you are," Rangiku sighed, coming around to face him, "You're physically and on some level, mentally, a ten year old boy. It's nothing to be ashamed of, Captain; it's never affected your capability as a leader, and everyone respects you anyway. If anything, they respect you more…"_

" _Because I'm a kid?" Toshiro glared at her. This was a big of a sensitive topic for him; what more did he have to prove to show people that he wasn't a kid? He'd done everything they'd ever asked of him plus more, and still they doubted him._

 _Rangiku's eyes softened and she reached out to touch his cheek, but he shook her away again._

" _Because you are the youngest captain in history," She murmured gently, "And because you never use it as an excuse not to work hard."_

 _Toshiro sighed; he didn't like being seen as a child, but he doubted that he was fooling many. He was genius, yes, and more mature than half of his division and definitely more than anyone in the Eleventh, but Rangiku was right – there was still a part of his brain that matched his physical age. It was the same part that wanted his lieutenant's affectionate gestures and the part that hated the responsibilities he was burdened with as a captain. Sometimes, he wished he could return to Junrinan and have a normal childhood, but that ship had sailed long ago and with his level of spiritual power, it had never even been a possibility._

…

Bright light blinded Rangiku for a second before the familiar surrounds of Ichigo Kurosaki's living room came into focus. She and Toshiro – her captain and her son (it was still weird to think that) – stepped out of the Senkaimon gate, their teenage host waiting patiently for them.

"Welcome back, guys," Ichigo grinned at them, pulling Toshiro into a tight hug before the prodigy's eyes could adjust and enable him to get away, "Long time, no see."

Rangiku smiled as she watched her little captain trying to wriggle out of Ichigo's strong hold; the two boys had developed a close friendship (not that Toshiro would admit it) since the Kusaka incident as well as throughout the Winter War. She doubted her captain knew it, but Toshiro really looked up to Ichigo – and not because of the massive height difference. When Ichigo decided he needed to train harder in order to protect his family and friends, Toshiro had decided he needed to train harder to protect his squad; When Ichigo had told them that he loved hot chocolate, suddenly Toshiro was demanding hot chocolate instead of his usual green tea; and when Ichigo told him that having a bright and unusual hair colour, _like orange or white_ , was cool, Toshiro finally stopped feeling so self-conscious about his hair.

It was almost like they were _brothers_. Ichigo was the protective and decisive big brother who adored Toshiro, and the boy genius was the little brother who idolised his older sibling and wanted to be just like him.

"Ichigo!" Toshiro hissed, finally twisting out of the embrace and scrambling away from the substitute as quickly as possible. Ichigo hadn't been called 'Kurosaki' in a long time now.

Rangiku felt a tug on her robes as the white haired boy slipped behind her and she couldn't help but think of a young child trying to hide behind his mother, the idea warming her heart.

Ichigo seemed to notice too before laughing a little. He stepped forward and greeted Rangiku with her own hug. It had been about three years since they'd first met the crazy fifteen year old ryoka that had once invaded the Seireitei with a small bunch of human friends and a cat who shall remain nameless, but the oldest Kurosaki child had grown a lot since then. He was taller and bigger built, his shoulders were stronger and his jawline more defined. His voice was deeper now, and he'd matured emotionally; Ichigo had just turned eighteen and was finishing up his final year of high school, so the Tenth Division leaders hadn't seen him all that often this last year, especially since the Soul Society had been, for the most part, peaceful.

"Rukia told me what happened at the meeting," Ichigo murmured quietly in her ear, "Are you two okay?"

"I'm not sure yet," Rangiku replied, and she wasn't lying.

The information was still so new and confronting, and she hadn't had time to process it yet. Toshiro still hadn't said much on the matter, but she figured he was just a confused as she was. There were, after all, so many emotions to deal with; Rangiku was _hurt_ because her friend had lied to her for years, _euphoric_ that she had a son, _devastated_ that she was only finding out about it now – almost a hundred years later, _furious_ at Gin's involvement, _worried_ how her son might be feeling about all of this, not to mention being absolutely _shocked_ by this whole thing, and _guilty_ about forgetting her baby boy; _Seriously, who forgets something like that?_ Sure, Yoruichi took her memory, but Rangiku had given birth, _god damn it_ , she should bloody well remember something like that.

Ichigo nodded understandingly as he withdrew from her.

"My dad knows you guys are staying but he doesn't know why yet," He told her, "He should be home soon, anyway."

Rangiku thanked him and the eighteen year old led them up the stairs and into the guest bedroom where their gigais laid lifelessly on the double bed.

"I assume you're okay with the one bed?" Ichigo asked Rangiku softly, as Toshiro moved towards the window and pretended like he wasn't listening.

"Yeah, it's fine," Rangiku smirked a little, "It never mattered to him before."

The truth was they tended to share beds a lot when on missions, particularly in the human world, and more often than not, Rangiku would wake in the middle of the night with her little captain curled up against her side and fisting her night shirt. Sometimes he was just asleep and unconsciously looking for a warm place to cuddle up to, but other times he was having nightmares, and she would have to smooth away his terrors by running her fingers through his hair and holding him close. He'd opened up to her once about his dreams, telling her that it was him as a much younger boy, running away from someone in the middle of a dangerous snow storm. Rangiku didn't have to guess where he'd developed that idea from anymore, and that thought made her furious again.

Ichigo caught them up to date on the Karakura gossip while they slipped into the bodies; he was now dating Orihime who was currently in Cambodia volunteering at an orphanage, Uryu was on exchange in England, Chad was still Chad – quiet and mysterious – and Tatsuki was now teaching self-defence to young men and women on the weekends and after school.

"My dad is keen on me taking up medicine next year," Ichigo continued, as they wandered back down into the living room, "But I'm not exactly sure if that's what I want-"

"Did somebody say 'Dad'?" Isshin exclaimed loudly as he jumped out from the dining room. He – like his son – wasted no time in engulfing Toshiro's body in a big bear hug. Isshin went to the added extra of scooping the young boy up and holding him up against his broad chest. "It's was you, wasn't it, Shiro-chan? Did you miss your daddy?"

"Don't call me that," Toshiro pouted, crossing his arms across his chest, "And put me down!"

"I've missed you so much though," Isshin cooed, booping the unimpressed captain on the nose playfully.

Toshiro's glare intensified and Rangiku smiled. Isshin was a good father, even before he had kids of his own. A long time ago, Isshin had been a Shiba instead of a Kurosaki, and had been both Ran and Toshiro's captain, while they'd been his lieutenant and third seat respectively. The three of them together held the top three seats in the squad and had become as close as family. Isshin had loved playing the father role to his young officer, and Rangiku had of course loved playing the mother role – despite Toshiro adamantly insisting he was 'not a child' – and more than once she had actually pictured the three of them becoming a real family. It had not been the case though, for Isshin had left them to start his own family here in the World of the Living. It had been a tough blow for the Tenth Division leaders but then again, without Isshin marrying Masaki, there would be no Ichigo or his younger sisters.

"And you're not my father," Toshiro murmured, his anger suddenly redirected as his glare shifted to the plain wall opposite them.

Rangiku's smile fell; no, Isshin wasn't the boy's father, Gin – _the evil bastard_ – was.

"Oh no?" Isshin continued to tease, completely oblivious to the new knowledge the others held, "Then tell me, little one, who is?"

Both Rangiku and Ichigo grimaced at the poor timing, and the orange haired teen sent an apologetic look to the lieutenant, silently expressing his apologies for not informing his father about the new development sooner.

"I have no father," Toshiro said evenly, his jaw clenched, teeth grinding and eyes narrowed as he seethed silently.

The tall black-haired man looked a little taken aback by the hostile response, and glanced at Rangiku questioningly. The big busted blonde couldn't form a facial expression to explain what was going on, in fact, she couldn't really form any expression as her heart ached for her son who had just found out his long-time enemy was his father – that the man who had tried to kill him, on more than one occasion, was the man who was supposed to love him unconditionally throughout his entire life.

Isshin put the young prodigy back down gently, before the boy slipped between Rangiku and Ichigo, stalking back up the stairs and muttering something about needing to have a nap to 'deal with you crazy Kurosaki's'

The three adults – Ichigo was pretty much an adult now – stood still and silent until they heard the guest room door being shut firmly.

"What was that all about?" Isshin whispered urgently, turning on Rangiku immediately.

"Uh…" Rangiku found the explanation lost in her throat as it constricted tightly. She was so overwhelmed.

"Rangiku and Toshiro have found out some big news, Dad," Ichigo supplied softly when Rangiku couldn't, "Ran and Gin Ichimaru are Toshiro's parents…"

"I'm sorry?" Isshin frowned, as if he had merely misheard his son.

"Apparently it's illegal in the Soul Society for two soul reapers to have babies together or something," Ichigo continued.

"Two people with high spiritual power," Rangiku found enough voice to correct the substitute; it was hard for her to remember all those years ago, but looking at the timeline of her life, Toshiro would have had to have been born before she had become a soul reaper, probably in the time that her and Gin had had that relationship break, which lasted almost three years.

"Right," Ichigo nodded before continuing, "And Yoruichi was in charge of the Stealth Force back then…"

Rangiku's jaw clenched at the purple haired woman's name, but Ichigo went on to explain the whole story as he'd heard it from Rukia. Isshin's face was frozen in surprise as he was told the news, and Rangiku was trying her hardest not to cry. This was all too much for her to handle. There were too many emotions to process and her mind wasn't letting her deal with any of them. Maybe she needed a nap too, preferably beside Toshiro because she needed to know that he was okay before she could think of herself, but the problem was that she needed to give him time to adjust; if she came on too strong, he would flip out and run from her.

"So…" Isshin murmured at last, "Let me just… Let me just get this straight… Rangiku, you are Toshiro's mother?"

Rangiku nodded, "Yes."

"Really?" Isshin continued to stare disbelievingly, "Like biologically his mother, and not just in that way we always used to joke about?"

"Biologically," the blonde confirmed, exhaling shakily.

"Right," Isshin nodded slowly several times before suddenly shaking his head again, refusing to accept her answers, "You gave birth to him then?"

"I thought you were a doctor," Rangiku snapped suddenly, annoyed by the repetitive questioning.

"And I thought you'd remember giving birth," Isshin quipped back with a half-shrug of his shoulders.

The blonde woman stepped back suddenly, her face snapping away and eyes clenching shut. She felt like she had just been slapped. It hurt because it was the truth. She'd forgotten her baby boy; what kind of mother forgets their child? _Not a very good one, obviously._

"Dad!" Ichigo cut across them both, "Enough. Yoruichi meddled with her memory, that's why she can't remember; it's not Rangiku's fault." There were a couple of beats of silence while Ichigo paused to allow one of them to speak again. When they didn't, he continued, "Now, I think we all need to focus on the little boy sleeping upstairs who has just found out he has a mother who was ripped away from him and a father who tried to kill him."

"You're right, Ichigo," Isshin sighed, and Rangiku felt a pair of big warm arms wrap around her body, as she desperately held back tears, "I'm sorry, Ran, it wasn't your fault. You know how I worry about Toshiro sometimes; I don't like the idea of him hurting like this."

"Neither do I," Rangiku replied thickly, _"He's my son."_

Isshin held her tighter and she took in his familiar scent. There had been a time, long ago, when she had wished to be in her darling Captain Shiba's arms, and go home every night to a warm and kind lover instead of Gin, who – although he loved her very much – was often cold and distant, his mind always somewhere else. Rangiku had been much younger then though, and now put it down to immature fawning over an authority figure like many girls go through at some stage.

"So you're here to sort out your new relationship," Isshin continued, cupping her chin and tilting her face to look up at his, "What kind of relationship do you want with him?"

"I want to be his mother," Rangiku answered firmly; she was sure about this, "I don't care if I have to transfer divisions, or step down as a lieutenant, as long as I get to be my son's mother _, properly_ – like I should have been this whole time."

Isshin nodded thoughtfully, "Good. Now we just need to find out what Toshiro wants…"

The three of them grimaced in unison; Toshiro rarely ever admits his feelings or openly admits what he wants. It was going to be a long week…

…

Toshiro stared out the window at the dark streets of Karakura Town; the sun had set long ago, dinner had passed and the Kurosaki children had retreated to their own rooms to do homework. Rangiku was downstairs somewhere, presumably giving him some space since the awkward dinner in which the twins had constantly kept asking what he and his lieutenant were doing in their house and why they were staying for the whole week. Isshin hadn't given them a response and neither had Ichigo, but Rangiku had tried the somewhat suspicious answer of 'we're on holiday'.

The genius was bored. He was a lot of things really, but he was forcing back any other thoughts and feelings; he didn't want to deal with them tonight. This left him restless, with no paperwork to do or hollows to fight – he'd considered sneaking out to train for a few hours but Rangiku would feel him leave and besides, there weren't too many places he could train with a zanpakuto in the World of the Living; it wasn't like he could conjure his bankai in the local park, he'd probably render every human in the street unconscious.

Perhaps though, he could train another way; _mentally._

The boy rose from the seat, immediately exiting his gigai, and pulling the sheathed sword from his back. He climbed onto the bed, sat with his legs crossed and placed Hyorinmaru in his lap. It was time for a little chat with the great dragon, and all he needed to do was close his eyes and focus on the cold…

"Master?" a familiar voice rumbled and sounded to be getting closer, "What brings you here this evening?"

The little captain opened his eyes; stark white flooded his vision – snow.

Plains of the purest white stretched as far as the eye could see, and the outlines of mountains in the distance sat still and peaceful. A frozen lake twisted through the land, silent and sparking. The temperature was cool but comfortable, even for a non-ice spirit, largely due to the lack of wind. Toshiro himself sat at the base of an ancient tree that was bare of leaves but had long, sharp icicles hanging maliciously from the branches above the captain's head; the boy genius was not concerned about the danger dangling high above him though, for he knew that they would not fall on him. This was his world after all.

"You look troubled, little one," Hyorinmaru spoke once more, and Toshiro glanced over his shoulder to see the giant ice dragon slithering closer.

Hyorinmaru's dragon form could shrink or grow to whatever size was necessary or comfortable and right now the gigantic reptilian frame was shrinking down to a much smaller size, probably less than ten metres in length, as it wound its body around the thick trunk while propping its head into Toshiro's lap – just as the sword had been back at the Kurosaki guest room – and nuzzling against his stomach softly. The white haired boy stroked the dragon's head gently, and gave a half smile as Hyorinmaru purred his content.

"You were listening at the meeting?" Toshiro asked eventually, deciding what he wanted to discuss first.

"Of course," Hyorinmaru replied, "I am always listening."

The child prodigy nodded slowly but did not speak as he tried to word his next question properly. The great dragon waited patiently.

"That night in the woods…" Toshiro began at last, "With Yoruichi… You caused that storm?"

"We caused it," Hyorinmaru corrected, his voice old and wise, "It was your panic that summoned me, your desperation that made me act."

"You protected me before I even knew your name?"

"Of course."

"Why?"

"You are my master."

Toshiro opened his mouth to speak before promptly closing it again; it was very rare for a zanpakuto spirit to reach out to a wielder so young and even rarer for them to use their powers to protect them before they'd learnt the spirit's name.

"I could not simply stand aside," Hyorinmaru expanded on his answer, "And I do not regret it, for otherwise neither one of us would be here together. You are my wielder, Toshiro Hitsugaya. You have hair that is the colour of the whitest snow and eyes of pure ice, both were gifts from me at your birth."

"Did you know then?" Toshiro asked what he'd been so desperate to ask, "Who my parents were?"

The dragon hesitated, "At one time, I suppose, but I lost my memory with yours. I remembered you, but not your life up until that night. I had your name, and I knew that you were my wielder because I always give those gifts to my wielders. It was all I needed to know."

"You didn't think to tell me that you'd lost a big chunk of your memory?"

"It's not a big chunk when you've lived as long as me, little one," the great dragon chuckled and Toshiro huffed his mild annoyance.

The two of them sat in silence for a long time. Toshiro wasn't sure if he wanted to ask his partner advice regarding what to do about Rangiku even though he was so desperately confused about it. He'd always wanted his lieutenant to be his mother but now that it was real, his defences were going up instinctively and a dark, nauseating feeling had settled in his stomach throughout the day.

He wanted her to love him, but what if she didn't? Or worse, what if she did, but then she was taken away from him again? It wasn't a ridiculous thought; she'd been taken away from him once and there were many other ways she could leave him. She could die, like Momo had, or just leave, like Captain Shiba had; there were many methods for abandonment out there, Toshiro wasn't sure he was prepared to risk it. However, he couldn't just leave things as they were; the fact was that their relationship would never be the same ever again, and there was no way he could order her around the division knowing that she was his mother.

This was all too much; he shouldn't have even thought about it again.

"The Kurosaki boy calls you, Master," Hyorinmaru rumbled gently in his lap, "You must return now."

Toshiro sighed, closing his eyes and re-opening them slowly.

He was sitting on the double bed once again; the only weight in his lap was the sheathed blade of his zanpakuto. Ichigo was squatting in front of him, big brown eyes skimming over him worriedly.

"Toshiro?" Ichigo murmured, his voice concerned, "What were you doing? I was calling you for ages…"

"Meditating," Toshiro shrugged, rolling over the side of the bed and returning his sword to his back – ready for any emergencies, "I needed to speak with Hyorinmaru."

"About your mum?" the orange haired teenager asked, taking a seat on the bed as Toshiro climbed back inside his gigai.

Toshiro sighed as he sat back up in the restricting faux body; he really did not want to talk about this all now.

"That is not your concern, Kurosaki," the young genius spoke evenly, but his voice was hard, cautioning Ichigo to back off the subject.

"You know, you're pretty lucky," Ichigo continued, either oblivious to or choosing to ignore the subtle warning, "I know it doesn't seem like it right now… but some people never get their mothers back."

The substitute's voice had gone soft towards the end and Toshiro glanced up to see the normally happy teen frowning at floor, lost in deep thought. When Rangiku looked like that, she was normally thinking of Ichimaru, and as much as Toshiro wanted to reach out and comfort her in those darker times, he was reminded of how much he had hated the man, and how he couldn't hope to offer up a single nice thing to say about him that might comfort his grieving second-in-command. Given Ichigo's most recent choice of words, Toshiro could safely assume the boy was thinking of his own mother, who had passed away many years ago. Another issue the prodigy couldn't help with, since his mother had just returned to his life, and was currently down stairs with the former captain that had also come back into his life.

"Did I ever tell you how my mother died, Toshiro?" Ichigo asked quietly, his brown eyes locking with Toshiro's teal.

The captain of the tenth did not speak, instead translating his answer into a mere shake of the head.

"She was killed by a hollow," Ichigo muttered, picking at the hem of his shirt absentmindedly, "She died trying to save my life…"

The young captain wanted to reach out to his friend; he hated seeing Ichigo anything other than happy, or crazy-protective-turned-murderous-rage since that was his token battle look, and Toshiro knew instantly that it meant the boy was going to win his fight. Sad though was not a feature that suited the substitute soul reaper in any way.

"There's nothing in the world I wouldn't do to have her back," Ichigo continued, his voice thick, "Don't waste your opportunity, Toshiro, your mum is here and she's alive, be happy with her."

Toshiro held back another sigh; Ichigo's intentions were good, but he was only proving Toshiro's point; People, such as mothers, die, or they leave another way, and the prodigy didn't want to feel the way Ichigo feels one day. He didn't want to be heartbroken for the rest of his life because Rangiku had died on him.

He didn't want to gain a mum after all these years just to lose her again.

…

Isshin huffed, heaving himself up through the attic skylight window and onto the roof; this would have been so much easier if he transformed back into his soul form, but he was trying to keep that to a minimum these days. His girls knew about soul reapers and hollows now, but he didn't want to encourage them to get involved, thus he tried not to transform unless it was absolutely necessary. He had also asked Ichigo to keep Kon around so that his sisters wouldn't noticed he'd left unless they saw him exit his body, which was something his son was forbidden to do in their presence, unless it was a dire emergency.

Carefully manoeuvring over the roof tiles, the father of three spotted the long strawberry blonde locks of his former second seat sitting on the edge of the roof, her legs dangling over the side.

"The roof was always Toshiro's favourite place to hide," Isshin commented as he moved to Rangiku's side.

"Still is," the woman smirked, glancing over her shoulder as he approached.

"Well, I think I can guess where he got that from," he chuckled, taking a seat beside her, "Like mother like son, eh?"

Rangiku gave a half smile, but Isshin could see the pain behind it. He felt terrible for what he had said to her earlier; it was definitely not her fault she'd had her memories taken from her. He'd been too quick to pass blame, the idea of his little innocent third seat hurting had burned in the back of his mind, but Rangiku was hurting too. She loved Toshiro more than anything, Isshin had always known that, and then she'd found out that the boy was actually her son, and that her long-time lover had handed them over to Central 46, knowing full well what would happen to them. She had been betrayed twice, once by Gin and once by her good friend Yoruichi, and she'd had the most precious thing in her life ripped away from her.

"Do you remember when we accidently called Toshiro 'Shiro-chan' in front of the squad?" Isshin grinned cheekily, "And then everyone started calling him that?"

Rangiku chuckled, "He hid on the office roof for the rest of the day. He wouldn't even come down for dinner."

"He was furious with us," Isshin agreed, "He built that ice wall around him so we couldn't bring him down and he was adamant that he was going to stay awake all night."

"That's right," Rangiku laughed again, and Isshin was happy to see her smile properly, "But he fell asleep before midnight, so we brought him down and put him to bed."

Isshin nodded, recalling the whole event, "Neither of us would be able to blast apart his ice wall if he did that now; he is more powerful than I ever was."

Toshiro had always been strong, even from his first day at the spiritual arts academy if Isshin remembered the reports correctly. Rangiku had been obsessed with the little boy she had found in Junrinan, and had practically begged him to sign the kid to the Tenth. Isshin had been sceptical at first, but when they had visited Toshiro at school, he'd seen the most adorable child practising levels of kido that were far more advanced than a student should know, and knew instantly that he just had to have him in his squad. Toshiro had agreed, mostly due to his familiarity with Rangiku and then it was made official, Squad Ten would be gain a new third seat after his graduation at the end of the year. The decision had been met with an uproar too, Isshin remembered, since it was the first case ever of a student graduating into such a high rank, especially when that student was a kid and was completing a six year program in twelve months.

Toshiro had earnt his place quickly however, mastering his shikai in no time at all, surpassing even Rangiku's strength in a few short years, and picking up the paperwork like it was second nature to him; he was easily the most valuable member of the squad in the time of Isshin's captaincy. When the boy expressed interest in learning bankai, Isshin knew it was only a matter of time until that little boy was made a captain.

"Toshiro is very strong," Rangiku hummed, "And determined, independent… smart. I'm not sure he actually needs a mother…"

"He does need a mother," Isshin argued, "He is all of those things, but he'd also be a mess without you."

Rangiku raised an eyebrow sceptically, "He's functioned pretty well without a mother his whole life."

"No, he hasn't," Isshin smirked and Rangiku glanced at him questioningly.

Isshin had been known Rangiku for the better part of fifty years, since she had transferred from the Eighth to be his lieutenant, and while he hadn't seen much of her since he had moved to the human world twenty years or so ago, he'd been her captain for a good thirty years of her career. In that time, Toshiro had been with them both for almost twenty years before Isshin had left the Soul Society, so the man had decent idea of the sort of relationship his two subordinates had developed.

"Do you still put him to bed at nine?" Isshin asked the blonde.

"Yes," Rangiku frowned, "Otherwise he'd stay up all night working."

"Exactly," the black haired man nodded, "And you still make him take a bath and brush his teeth every night?"

"It's a struggle, but yes," Rangiku nodded, "Again, he'd rather work… Sometimes he takes work to the bath with him…"

Isshin laughed loudly at that; of course their little workaholic prodigy pulled stunts like that.

"And you make him eat his meals?" Isshin continued.

"Well he'd rather starve than take breaks…" Rangiku frowned again, "I don't want him to get sick."

"Right, but if he did get sick, you'd take care of him," the father stated, a very vivid memory surfacing in his mind, "Like that time when he got sick during that big heatwave…"

…

 _Isshin slid open the office door and ducked inside, not bothering to turn on the lights as the light of dusk outside was still bright enough for him to get around his own office. As soon as he was in, he dumped the paperwork on his desk, slipped off the haori and was about to flop onto the nearest couch when he spotted Rangiku sitting quietly opposite him._

 _He didn't have to ask what she was doing as he noticed the prone form of their small third seat cradled in her lap, his head resting just below her shoulder as he slept. He was clad in only a pair of boxers, and a thin layer of sweat glistened over his skin._

" _Finally get sick, did he?" Isshin whispered, dropping to sit on the coffee table directly in front of his subordinates._

 _Rangiku nodded, and Isshin reached out to touch Toshiro's forehead; it was dangerously hot. The Seireitei had been struck with an abnormally hot summer, and the only people happy about it were the fire-type zanpakuto wielders. There was a certain degree of danger in the heat for the ice-types like Toshiro however, and the Fourth Division had recommended they take it easy during the heatwave, but of course, Toshiro being Toshiro, refused to relax or take breaks, so Isshin had known it was only a matter of time before his body betrayed him._

" _He threw up after the training drills this afternoon," Rangiku informed him quietly, "And fainted shortly after that. Isane checked him over; she said he just needs rest and plenty of water… and to take a few days off work."_

" _Of course," Isshin nodded, "I've been telling him that for days now."_

" _We both have," Rangiku agreed with a grimace, "But he is stubborn, and won't tell us when he's feeling unwell."_

 _The boy in her arms stirred a little, groaning softly and nuzzling his face against Rangiku's collarbone. The blonde woman used her free hand – the one that wasn't supporting Toshiro's back – to gently rake though the boy's thick snowy hair and made soft shushing noises; Toshiro instantly fell back into a peaceful sleep._

 _Isshin grinned a little, "I'm surprised he's letting you hold him like that…"_

" _Me too," Rangiku nodded, a small smile forming on her lips, "I thought he wouldn't want anyone near him given how hot his body is… he was restless and having nightmares, nothing was working so I just picked him up like this and it was the only thing that was able to calm him in the end."_

 _Rangiku would make an excellent mother one day, Isshin had decided then, as he watched the beautiful woman reach for a wet cloth that was sitting on the coffee table beside him. She lightly dabbed it on the young boy's forehead and face, before moving it down across his chest. Toshiro sighed contently in his sleep causing Isshin to chuckle softly; the boy was too cute for his own good._

" _I think it's starting to cool down," Rangiku murmured, glancing out the window, "I hope Toshiro can get a good night's sleep tonight."_

" _I've just been talking to Shunsui, and he seems to think there's a cool change coming through this evening," Isshin told her, "I really hope so, even I'm starting to feel sick now."_

 _Rangiku nodded solemnly, and Isshin noticed the way her arms tightened protectively around the child in her lap._

…

"You've always been his mother, Ran," Isshin murmured.

Rangiku took a deep breath and nodded slowly, her gaze unfocused as she stared at the street below, her mind obviously far, far away.

Isshin leant over and grasped the woman's hand. He wanted to sooth away her troubles and promise her everything would sort itself out – and he was positive it would – so he brought the soft hand to his lips and kissed it gently. The corners of his former lieutenant's mouth twitched upwards and Isshin grinned, pulling the strawberry blonde in for another hug. His arms wrapped around her body and he pulled her closer to him so now their legs were touching.

"Give Toshiro some time to process the news," Isshin advised softly in her ear, "Ichigo is talking to him now."

"Toshiro might even listen then," Rangiku chuckled against his shoulder.

Isshin nodded, "Well, Ichigo just adores Toshiro; he'll do everything he can to help."

"They're close, aren't they?" Rangiku commented, glancing up at Isshin.

"Ichigo studies so much harder than he used to," Isshin chuckled, "Because he wants to be smart like Toshiro. He also likes winter a lot more than he used to."

Rangiku laughed, her face erupting in a glorious smile and her icy blue eyes sparkled brightly. Isshin couldn't help but stare; Rangiku Matsumoto was, without a single doubt, one of the most gorgeous women to ever grace this world. He had never told her, but back before he'd met Masaki and moved to the World of the Living, Isshin had once had a bit of a crush on his beautiful lieutenant. He never made a move though, despite his earlier reputation as a bit of a ladies man, because he was her boss, and he'd never use and abuse her like that. Isshin had also heard some ridiculous rumours floating around that Rangiku had slept her way up the ranks, but he knew for certain that it wasn't true, because she certainly hadn't tried anything on him to get to her lieutenant position. She'd earnt that rank fair and square. He wasn't going to add fuel to the fire though, he wanted Rangiku to be respected for the reasons she deserved to be.

"I always thought it was the other way around," Rangiku said, humour still flashing in her eyes, "I thought Toshiro was the one who trailed after Ichigo."

"It's a bit of both, I think," Isshin smirked, "They're almost like…"

"Brothers?" Rangiku supplied thoughtfully.

Isshin smiled, "Yeah, like brothers."

He leant forward and kissed the blonde's forehead softly, the woman's eyes fluttering shut at the action. Isshin squeezed the hug tighter for a second before releasing her. Out of the corner of his eye he saw the light filtering out of Ichigo's window below them on the far right disappear as his son had obviously returned to his room and gone to bed.

"It seems Ichigo has finished talking to Toshiro," Isshin nodded towards the window as he got to his feet, "We should go check on our children and make sure they're going to sleep."

He extended a hand out to Rangiku, who held it and allowed him to pull her up.

"Toshiro probably has gone to bed on his own," She murmured as they walked back towards the skylight window, "He's got no paperwork to keep him up."

"Keep him away from video games then," Isshin commented dryly, "Karin's a nightmare to get to bed, and she's fourteen now!"

"Noted," Rangiku giggled before dropping down through the window and landing effortlessly.

Isshin followed, much less gracefully, and they walked down the attic stairs and into hallway lined with bedroom doors.

"Goodnight, Mummy!" Isshin teased poking Rangiku in the back as she walked off towards the guest room.

"It's creepy when you say it," She shot back over her shoulder, before disappearing inside the room.

Isshin grinned; he'd missed her… and Toshiro. He'd missed them both.

They were still his family, no matter how much time had passed.

…

Rangiku slipped inside the guest bedroom and her heart nearly melted at the sight; her son, curled up in a tangle of sheets and blankets, fast asleep on the bed. The lieutenant smiled; it was hard to believe that she had only found out about their biological relationship that very morning in the captains' meeting. It had been such a long day; the meeting, waking up in the office, packing and preparing the squad, travelling between worlds, catching up with the Kurosaki family… no wonder her little captain was so exhausted.

The strawberry blonde woman moved towards her son's side, untangling his blankets – since he wasn't used to having so many layers on his bed – and tucked him back in. Toshiro didn't stir at all as she pulled the covers up over his shoulders or kissed his forehead softly. She still couldn't believe this boy in front her, the one she took orders from, was once a baby that she'd held inside her, and had once nursed and probably even breastfed. He'd grown up so much without her, and the thought that she'd missed his first words, or the first time he had walked, or maybe even the first time he'd opened his eyes and revealed those breathtaking teal irises that she loved so much, made her miserable. Well, technically she had been there for all those events, but without her memory, she might as well have not been there at all.

Rangiku sighed sadly, and turned towards the ensuite bathroom. She took a quick shower – that did nothing to clear her mind – and brushed her teeth before returning to the main bedroom. She flicked off the lights and climbed into the bed.

She did not think twice about reaching for Toshiro and pulling him close, nor about wrapping her arms around him and kissing the back of his head. He was her son, whether she had found out today or not, the fact was still the same, and she had loved him way before she had known the truth. Even before today, she had vowed to protect him, support him and care for him in every way possible, and she would continue to do so.

Rangiku would take it slow with him if that's what he needed to get used to the whole idea, but she would not give up if he turned her away.

 _She was his mother._

…

 **Oh and by the way, there will be some background Isshin x Rangiku...**

 **Please review xxx**


	3. Fear

**GUUIIIZZZ,**

 **Uni is killing me rn :( I had three assignments due this week and zero days off to work on them DX RIP.**

 **Anyway, here's part three:**

…

Chapter Three: Fear

" _Third Seat Matsumoto," Captain Unohana greeted as she sat at her desk opposite Rangiku, "Please sit."_

 _Rangiku did as she was told, and played idly with the knot of her obi. If she was being honest, she was a little nervous for her meeting with the respected healer and Captain of the Fourth. Today, she was getting back the results of her medical check which would determine whether or not she could go for the open lieutenant's position in the Squad Ten. All graduates from the academy are given a 'Level One' medical check to determine whether they are fit for active duty – those who fail generally becoming healers or joining the lower divisions of the Stealth Force (messengers) as they are not required to fight – but to become a lieutenant, a 'Level Two' medical exam is required. The Level Two is much more thorough, and the Level Three for those wishing to become a captain is even worse._

 _The second level requires a full physical examination, blood tests, urine tests and of course, Unohana's special kido scans. It can be rather invasive, but to hold the second seat in a squad, a soul reaper must be of perfect physical health if they wish to continue. Captain Ukitake of Squad Thirteen was the one exception due to the current health laws being introduced after his rise to captaincy and Central Forty-Six ruled that he could keep his position despite the chronic illness._

" _Rangiku Matsumoto, you are in near-perfect health and I am happy to sign you off as fit for a lieutenant's position," The healer smiled gently as she looked up from the test results in her hands._

" _Are you serious?" Rangiku exclaimed, astounded and elated beyond belief, "This is amazing, thank you, Captain Unohana, thank you so much!"_

 _Retsu Unohana nodded, taking the medical clearance form and filling out her parts. Rangiku was overjoyed; now the only step left was to convince Captain Shiba that she was right for the job._

" _There is just one more thing I'd like to discuss with you before you leave, Rangiku," Unohana said, doctor voice activated, "During the examination, I discovered something that wasn't recorded in your medical history, and as you might understand, I must have accurate records for all soul reapers as it can affect what treatments I can give them."_

 _Rangiku frowned, "What did you find that wasn't recorded?"_

 _As far as she knew, anything that was worth recording had been, not that she'd ever had any medical issues other than the odd injury from hollow battles._

" _Your uterus is severely scarred, Rangiku," The healer captain furrowed her brows together, "It looks to be the result of a serious abdominal injury, but I have no records of such an injury occurring, nor does your skin have an scars to indicate what might have happened."_

" _My uterus is scarred?" Rangiku questioned, "But I've never had an injury in that area before!"_

" _It is possible that the scarring is quite old," Unohana continued, "Perhaps from before you joined the academy?"_

" _No, I…" Rangiku sighed, "I don't recall being hurt."_

 _Unohana sighed and grimaced._

" _It is unlikely that any injury that you might have received while alive would carry over after death, so it must of happened in this world," the captain of Squad Four spoke softly, sounding as if she was speaking to herself more than anything, "However, as it will have no effect on your duty, I will simply record it for future reference and let it go. I do, however, need to discuss the personal implications with you quickly."_

" _Implications?" Rangiku repeated, a swirl of anxiety coiled in her stomach._

" _Yes," the healer nodded solemnly, "Rangiku, I'm sorry, but with this level of scarring, it is extremely unlikely – if not, impossible – for you to ever conceive a child."_

 _In that moment, the world stopped turning. Rangiku was positive her heart had frozen in her chest and bile rose in her mouth._

" _So, I'll never have a baby?" She repeated, her voice sounded unlike it normally would, as if someone else was using her mouth to speak through her._

" _Well, no…" Unohana sighed before pausing thoughtfully for a second, "But with the current laws, it would be illegal for you to anyway, unless of course you married a noble."_

 _Rangiku nodded slowly, trying to calm and reason with herself. She had known for a long time that it was illegal for her to have a child – as Gin had reminded her on several occasions – but knowing that it was medically impossible for her to conceive was a different blow, a much harder and devastating blow. Laws could be overturned, nobles could fall in love and marry her, but uterus scarring could not be undone._

 _She was so sure that having a child was her calling; she wasn't a great worker or an incredible fighter, her life goal wasn't to become a captain, it wasn't even to become somebody's wife. She wanted to be a mother, even as a young girl, wandering the streets of the Rukon districts, with no food and no money, she remembered dreaming of her future; a future in which she was a strong and independent mother, raising an adorable infant or two. Once or twice, she'd even considered baby names; 'Takeo' for a boy, and 'Kaiya' for a girl… But it was all just a fantasy now._

 _Rangiku would never be a mother._

…

"So…" Rangiku drawled, leaning against the doorframe of the Kurosaki guest room, "Are we going to talk about it today?"

Today was the start of their third day in the World of the Living and so far, her Captain and son had been avoiding the big discussion regarding the future of their relationship. The boy in question was sitting by the window once again, nose buried behind another book – his third book, in fact; he'd read three books in less than three days and while Rangiku adored the sight, even though it reminded her strongly of her ex, she also knew it was a sign that the boy was not dealing with his new emotions; books were his escape from reality.

"Talk about what?" Toshiro mumbled, not glancing up from the book he'd borrowed from Ichigo's bedroom.

"I think you know," Rangiku sighed, stepping inside the room and closing the door behind her.

The strawberry blonde woman made her way over to the window and sat in the chair opposite her tiny captain. She briefly glanced at the front cover, a skeleton wearing a suit and hat was drawn as if in the middle of a battle, fire glowing in his hands, and the title underneath read _'Skulduggery Pleasant: The faceless Ones'_ by an author named Derek Landy. It was now the third book she'd seen her son reading this week with the same skeleton man on the cover; it was clearly a series, but Rangiku was starting to wonder if it was age appropriate, given the title and rather violent-looking covers. Maybe she should ask Ichigo? _Gods, she really was becoming a mother now._

"Do you want to tell me how you're feeling about all this?" Rangiku prodded, since the boy hadn't said anything else.

Toshiro's eyes flickered up to meet hers briefly before returning back to his book. She could tell he'd stopped actually reading now as his eyes were no longer moving back and forth across the page but staring hard at the one spot.

"You go first," he mumbled eventually.

Rangiku's mouth twitched; _her son was so cute._

"Okay then," the lieutenant smiled softly, "I know we found out a lot of terrible things the other day, but finding out you were my son was the greatest news I've ever heard."

"Are you sure it's not more just that you have a son than the fact that it's me?" Toshiro asked, still staring at his book.

"What?"

The white haired boy sighed, "I'm merely pointing out that you wanted to be a mother so badly, I don't think that it's relevant who the kid actually is. You'd be just as happy if you found out Ichigo was your son, or if Kusajishi was your daughter, or if some random kid in the Rukongai was yours. It doesn't matter if it's me or not; you're just happy to have a son."

Rangiku leant back thoughtfully; it was sometimes scary how intuitive her captain could be. She'd never once mentioned to him that she wanted to be a mother; she'd never mentioned it to anyone after finding out she couldn't even have kids. The problem was that while her captain was highly intelligent, sometimes his lack of self-esteem and confidence twisted his thoughts negatively.

"Yes, I have wanted to be a mother for a very long time," Rangiku agreed softly, "But the fact that you are my son makes me so much happier. I've loved you for a long time, _Toshiro_ , and even though I didn't know of our connection, I still cared for you and played the mother role. I didn't just want to be a mother, I wanted to be _your_ mother. You were my little one, even from the day I met you."

"You mean the day you knocked me over with your chest weapons," Toshiro muttered, eyes flicking up to glare at the aforementioned 'chest weapons' with distaste.

Rangiku giggled, "Hey now, I'm pretty sure I once fed you with these-"

"Don't say that!" Toshiro hissed, glancing around the room, as if someone might be there listening and Rangiku burst out laughing.

The captain's cheeks were an adorable pink as he hid behind the book again. The busty blonde let her giggles die down slowly, allowing the boy some time for the heat in his cheeks to recede. She recalled the moment of their first meeting vividly; a scrawny little white-haired boy, quietly taking the shopkeeper's rude remarks without a fight. She remembered not being able to stand back as an innocent child was treated so badly, and stepped forward to intervene. Due to her height, she had to lean down a fair bit in order to loom over the short shopkeeper, and as a result, she had accidently knocked over Toshiro on her way past him. The strongest part of her memory was when she had turned around and found the small boy on the ground; she had been able to pick him up with one hand back then, the boy couldn't have been older than six or seven in human years. The thing that had stuck out to her more than anything was just how familiar he seemed to her; those teal eyes were the most unique thing she'd ever seen, but even then, she felt like she'd seen them before.

"Toshiro," it still felt weird to call him by his first name to his face since she hadn't done it since he'd been promoted to outrank her, "The fact is, I'm your mother, and I want to take on that role officially."

The ice wielder sat still and quiet, not answering her immediately. Rangiku didn't feel the need to prompt him for a response just yet; she knew that he wasn't ignoring her, more likely he was just trying to figure out what he wanted himself.

"What about your job?" Toshiro asked at last.

"Yamamoto said we could keep our positions," Rangiku frowned in confusion, "I'll still be your lieutenant."

"Family shouldn't be in the same squad," the boy argued, "It's dangerous."

"What about Kaien Shiba and his wife?" Rangiku pointed out, "They were married, and they worked together fine."

"Oh, you mean the ones that both died on the same day?" Toshiro muttered, "Kaien could have lived but because they were in the same squad, they were on the same mission and faced the same enemy. He lost his wife, threw himself recklessly into battle, and died because he couldn't think straight. It wouldn't have happened if they were in different squads."

"Are you worried about dying for me?" Rangiku frowned again; it was a strange fear for a child to have so young, and also not something she ever intended to let him do for her – if anything, it was her who would die for him; all children should outlive their parents.

"I'm worried about you dying," Toshiro corrected, as if reading her thoughts and eyes finally flicked up to meet hers. They stared at her with an intensity level she hadn't seen before and Rangiku found her breath caught in her throat.

The lieutenant felt like they were nearing the root of the problem that her son seemed to have, but any possible response on her part had been lost. Teal bore into her and she could see so many emotions flashing through those irises; love, happiness, sadness, anger, and… _fear_ ; an overwhelming and suffocating amount of fear.

"It's one thing to lose your lieutenant," Toshiro murmured, looking away again, "It's another thing entirely to lose your mother… Just ask Ichigo."

His last line was whispered, and Rangiku sat in her chair with no idea how to respond. Their jobs were dangerous; soul reapers died all the time, and over the last few years, captains and lieutenants seemed to drop like flies. Momo had been the first to go at Aizen's hand, but the Gotei Thirteen had also lost Gin and Captain Tosen (traitors, but they had died regardless), and they'd already mentioned Kaien. It was a miracle Toshiro himself had survived being cut down by Aizen and almost every single lieutenant and captain had spent time in the Fourth after the final battle of the Winter War. Dying was a realistic possibility in their line of work.

Rangiku sighed, "Well then if it makes you feel better, I'll resign. I'd rather be your mother than a lieutenant."

"But I need you as my lieutenant," Toshiro frowned, "None of our other officers are qualified enough."

It was true that no one else in Squad Ten was ready to take on a lieutenant's position. They'd only just promoted their third seat and he was even struggling with that role.

"I can transfer then," Rangiku offered, "A sort of lieutenant swap with one of the other squads?"

Toshiro scoffed, "I don't like any of the other lieutenants."

"You like Nanao and Rukia," the blonde frowned; this was getting difficult, "Even Renji now."

"I can't have Ise, because then you would be back with Kyoraku and absolutely no work would get done over there – I doubt the head captain would even allow that swap," Toshiro muttered, "Kuchiki only just got promoted, so she won't want to leave Ukitake and Abarai has that weird complex about trying to beat his captain."

Rangiku opened her mouth to argue, but Toshiro cut over the top, continuing through the list of lieutenants.

"Sasakibe is too dedicated to his captain, Omaeda annoys me as much as he annoys Soi Fon, so does Kira for that matter and I wouldn't leave you in charge of the entire Third Division anyway. Kotetsu is a healer, so she can't move. I don't even know the new lieutenants of Squad Five and Nine by name. Iba is out of the question, so is Kusajishi and Kurotsuchi."

Rangiku gave a low whistle; despite all the books he'd been busy reading, the prodigy had obviously given some serious thought to his predicament. Apparently, he wasn't satisfied with any of their options however, still Rangiku mentally noted the lieutenants he hadn't openly admitted to disliking – Rukia, Renji, Nanao and Chojiro (he was right about Isane not being able to leave the Fourth); perhaps they were still worth talking too, if only just to see if they'd be interested in a swap.

"Well, if no one else can fill my spot, I guess I'll just have to be your lieutenant and your mother for the time being," Rangiku reached out to touch her son's cheek but the boy stood quickly, striding over to the other side of the bed.

"That just brings us full circle," Toshiro grumbled from the far side of the room, "You can't be both."

Rangiku retracted her hand from the empty space in front of her slowly; her smile had dropped and she sighed sadly. She knew her son well and therefore knew that he took his time dealing with emotional stuff, but still, it hurt a little that the boy genius didn't just fall into her arms instantly and start calling her 'Mum'. He didn't seem as delighted by the news of their relation as Rangiku was; in fact, this was the most they'd spoken in three days.

"Why not?" She asked softly, trying to not let the hurt show in her voice; she kept her eyes in her lap just in case he was looking at her.

"Because, as I said earlier, it's dangerous," Toshiro said and Rangiku heard him flop onto the bed, "And weird; what do I call you? 'Matsumoto' still or is it 'Mum' now? And who disciplines who? I'm your captain but you're my mother, so are you going to ground me every time I yell at you for not doing the paperwork? Furthermore, who takes orders from whom? I still outrank you, so does that mean I don't actually have to clean my room if you tell me to?"

"Your room is always clean," Rangiku mumbled, torn between a grin and a frown.

The captain made some very good points, but that didn't mean she liked them. He was right however; it would be too strange for them to be working together now. Toshiro hadn't mentioned the reactions of the Squad but Rangiku was sure it was lingering in the back of his mind; She knew that their soldiers loved and cared for him enough not to say anything but the prodigy would surely be concerned that they would lose respect for him if he openly had his mother by his side everywhere he went. They probably all knew by now anyway, since rumours flew through the Seireitei like wild fire.

"That's not the point," Toshiro groaned.

Rangiku spared a glance over to her son; he was sprawled on top of the mattress on his stomach, arms folded beneath his head for support and face turned away from her. She knew that move; that was his frustrated /doesn't-know-the-answer-for-once-in-his-life position, more commonly executed on the office couches, at his desk or on the floor if he was desperate enough. Most notably, during the ryoka invasion/Aizen's faked death before he'd come out as a traitor.

"We can set some ground rules then?" Rangiku suggested, "Only call me 'Mum' in private and not during work hours. I'll take orders from you when we're at work and if I do something wrong, you can discipline me. After hours, we swap."

Toshiro sighed in frustration and Rangiku saw him pinch the bridge of his nose, "I can't work like that, I can't work knowing you're my mother and the big point still remains; I can't fight beside you if I'm constantly worried about you getting hurt all the time."

The strawberry blonde woman inhaled sharply; through all the vague references the boy had made to it being 'dangerous' for them to work together, she'd never actually pictured herself fighting beside him. Outside of war times, it was uncommon for the two highest seats in a squad to be called into battle, unless their own squad required back up and they were nearby enough to help. Until Aizen's perfection of the arrancar, hollows – even meno classed ones – were rarely strong enough to warrant calling in a lieutenant, let alone a captain. Most of their duties had been administrational up until Aizen's betrayal, but these days, they were fighting all the time; arrancars were too strong for an unseated soul reaper, and many were still out there, even after Aizen's capture.

Rangiku found herself pinching the bridge of her own nose as well; she was running out of ideas and her son was being extremely difficult, what with all those good points he kept making; _damn prodigy_. He got that from his father, although she'd never dare say that out loud.

"Well then we need to revisit the lieutenant-swap idea," Rangiku said evenly, "Because I lost a hundred years of being your mother, and I am not giving up any more years now."

Toshiro didn't answer, and Rangiku stood from her chair. She slipped on to the bed and laid beside her son, even though he was still facing away from her. She let her fingers twist gently through his stubbornly messy white locks. They were both silent for a long time, and after a while Rangiku thought maybe Toshiro had fallen asleep.

"I don't trust anybody else to be my lieutenant," he said eventually, his voice barely above a whisper, "But I can't work with you anymore."

 _Well, that hurt._ It was actually more of a backhanded compliment that he had so much trust in her, but it still hurt her that her son no longer wanted to work beside her anymore, after forty years in the same squad and twenty years as her captain.

"What do you want then?" She asked softly.

"I don't know."

 _That hurt even more._

"Well, I know what I want," Rangiku clicked her tongue a little impatiently, "I don't care if I stay as your lieutenant or not, but I will be your mother. You figure out which option works best for you, and then tell me what you want so I can make arrangements if necessary."

Again, Toshiro didn't answer. This time, however, he surprised her by rolling over and burying his face in her shoulder. It took a second to comprehend what was happening, and even after she had accepted the fact he'd just cuddled up to her willingly, she still didn't believe it. He had never initiated affection with her before. Slowly, she let her arms wrap around him and hold him tightly; his nose nuzzled against her softly and small hands fisted in her shirt.

He wasn't crying, but she remembered the fear she'd seen in his eyes and it clicked; he was scared. Scared of working with his mother, scared of the prospect of getting a new lieutenant, scared of the reactions of their squad and anyone else who might have something to say about it, scared of all these emotions he was now feeling and maybe even still concerned about the possibility Kurotsuchi had planted in his mind about being executed, but more than anything, she knew he was most afraid of losing her.

Suddenly, the apparent indecision and lack of enthusiasm didn't hurt anymore. Her son was facing something new and completely foreign to him, the emotions were overwhelming him and this had resulted in him pulling back from her. She was reminded again of just how young he really was; he might have been a captain and a genius, but this was too much for any child to bear.

"Have you considered resigning yourself?" She asked him softly, her hand running up and down his back soothingly, "We could both quit, move out to a nicer district… You could be a kid, I could be a mother, and nobody would have to fight hollows…"

"You know I can't," Toshiro mumbled against her shoulder, "They haven't been able to fill Squad Three's vacant captain's position and it's been over a year now, could you imagine if we both walked out on them?"

"Is that the only reason?"

"It's the only one I'm giving today."

Rangiku sighed internally – the more she confronted her son, the more he withdrew. What he needed was time; it was a frustrating process for her but she'd be patient with him. She held her son close, even after his breathing turned deep and even and his muscles went completely limp against her. She didn't like that her little boy was suffering, but at least she knew he wasn't trying to reject her.

She decided she would contact those few lieutenants about a potential swap; it was time to do what a mother should, and do what was best for her son.

…

When Toshiro woke from his nap, his lieutenant was no longer beside him. He recalled their recent discussion, and how he had initiated a cuddle; he'd always thought he'd be too embarrassed to do that, or even too proud as a captain, but since finding out Rangiku was his mother, it was a whole lot harder for him to restrain himself. He'd finally caved, rolling into his mother's chest and snuggling down beside her, and surprisingly, he wasn't as ashamed of his actions as he thought he'd be; she was his mother, after all, and she had been very adamant about wanting to embrace her newfound role… what was the harm in indulging her for a few minutes? Well, to be honest, he was on the brink of becoming rather emotional and just needed her to hold him for a while, but if anyone ever asked, he was going to say he did it for her. _Okay, maybe he was a little embarrassed._

The prodigy sat up, wiping the sleep from his eyes and glancing around the empty guest room; Rangiku was nowhere to be found, and when he strained his ears, he couldn't hear anything downstairs. He was a little hungry, actually, and after glancing at the time, he saw that it was well after lunch now. Maybe he could wander downstairs and, with a bit of luck, someone would offer him some food? Hopefully not Rangiku though; she wasn't a bad cook, per se, but she did make the most horrible creations at times, blending ingredients that just do not go together – very much like that Orihime girl.

Toshiro slid out of the bed, straightened his clothes and exited the bedroom. As he neared the bottom of the stairs, his ears began to pick up voices speaking in hushed tones. Two males, one female; the woman was definitely Rangiku, and as he got closer, Toshiro identified Isshin's voice. The third remained a mystery, although it was definitely familiar – someone the young genius knew, but didn't know well.

"I'm not here to apologise on her behalf," the unidentified voice said evenly.

"Good," Rangiku scoffed, "Because I'm never going to forgive her."

Despite the obvious attempt to keep her voice down, her tone was very much venomous and it sounded like she was spitting her words. Toshiro didn't have to guess who she might be referring to; they hadn't talked about it, but it was very clear to him that she was still furious with Yoruichi Shihoin. If Yoruichi was indeed the woman that she and the mystery man were discussing then Toshiro now had a good idea about who the other guy was.

"I think it's a little too soon, Kisuke," Isshin murmured calmly and unknowingly confirming the prodigy's suspicions, "It might be better to come back at the end of the week…"

"I won't take long," Urahara assured them hurriedly, "I just need to give them something. Is little Hitsugaya around?"

"You aren't going anywhere near my son," Rangiku spat.

Toshiro rolled his eyes a little; if she was protective before she was his mother, now she was going to be unbearable. He kind of liked it though, or maybe he just wanted her to be uncooperative with Urahara due to that 'little' comment he made. It wasn't his fault he was small for his age – why was he so small anyway? Rangiku was tall, and so was Ichimaru… Toshiro scowled; he couldn't even blame Ichimaru for this.

"I'm not going to hurt him," Urahara responded coolly, "I'm not even going to touch him. I just think he should be here for this."

"For what?" Toshiro heard himself saying, finally making it down the last few steps and into the downstairs living room.

Urahara stood uncharacteristic stiff, his face serious and even a little sombre. Rangiku looked furious, her fists and jaw clenched, and her hostile stance reminded Toshiro vaguely of an aggressive cat, watching its prey and ready to strike at any moment. It made sense to him; Rangiku's zanpakuto was a cat, after all, and just as he had adopted many dragon-like characteristics, it was only logical that she would develop feline traits from her Haineko. Now that Toshiro thought about it, the cat bond was probably what drew Rangiku to Yoruichi initially, and possibly what made the betrayal that much worse. To her, on some level, they'd been family.

"Ahh Toshiro," Isshin looked a little relieved to see him from his mediator position between Urahara and Rangiku, and began to wave him over enthusiastically, "Come here, son."

Sparing a glance at Rangiku, Toshiro slowly ambled over, standing between his lieutenant and his former captain. The strawberry blonde woman was visibly trying to calm down now that he was in the room, but even as he stopped beside her, he caught her hand moving behind him out of the corner of his eye, ready to grab him if she needed to. Isshin noticed the movement too, sharing a quick look with Toshiro, before clapping the young prodigy softly on the shoulder.

"You said you had something to give them," Isshin directed his attention to the former captain of the Twelfth, "What is it?"

The scientist dipped a hand into the satchel he was carrying over his shoulder and pulled out two glowing spheres; one was a small pearly white orb, close to the size of a golf ball, while the other was almost charcoal in colour and larger – just bigger than a tennis ball. Toshiro frowned at his own analogies; it was definitely Ichigo's fault for all the human sports references. The orange haired substitute would have been proud to hear him comparing the spheres like that, while Karin Kurosaki might have been mad he hadn't mentioned a soccer ball, given that soccer was the one human sport they had in the Soul Society. Neither globe was comparable with a soccer ball, though, so that really wasn't his fault.

"What are they?" Rangiku asked, eyeing the spheres suspiciously and Toshiro felt her hand curl in the back of his shirt gently.

"Your memories," Urahara informed them, "The ones Yoruichi took from you."

Rangiku's grip tightened in his T-shirt and Toshiro tried to keep his face as impassive as possible, but his eyes were immediately drawn back to the orbs. The white one wasn't pearl at all, it was _snow_. It was his memories. They were so close to him, all he had to do was take three steps forward and reach out for them. The sphere glowed in Urahara's palm, like it knew its' owner was close by. The boy genius felt so incredibly drawn to it.

He wondered if Urahara was returning them so that he and Rangiku could see their old memories, and marvelled about what he might see in them. Possibly not much, given how young he was, and perhaps even the night Yoruichi had attacked and separated them which was something Toshiro didn't actually want to remember. From the former stealth force commander's tale, he should still have the memory of his escape and any events before Granny found him wandering alone in Junrinan, but he didn't; maybe he didn't remember because he'd been too young, or perhaps he didn't remember because he hadn't wanted to.

The prodigy's eyes flickered up to his lieutenant and back down to the other charcoal orb, which he now noticed had swirling patterns in it, like smoke… or ash. Their memory orbs were the colours of their elements, making them unique to them personally. Just as he had wondered what he might see in his own memories, he pondered what Rangiku might see in hers. They would be a lot more extensive, that's for sure.

"Yoruichi kept them all these years," Urahara continued after several beats of silence had passed, "She asked me to return them to you."

The blonde scientist handed the two orbs to Isshin carefully, as if they were made of fragile glass. The black haired man glanced down at them before immediately looking away, his eyes clenched shut. Toshiro's head cocked sideways unconsciously; could Isshin see their memories just by looking at the globes?

"I'm sure you can work out whose is whose," Urahara murmured, now looking at Rangiku, "If you don't want them, break them and the memories will vanish for ever – nobody will ever see them."

"And if I want to see them?" Rangiku asked, her voice now thick and slightly vulnerable.

She reached over to Isshin and took the grey sphere from his hand. Unlike her previous captain, Rangiku didn't look down at the orb, simply holding it securely against her stomach.

What would Rangiku see in hers? The moment she realised she was pregnant, probably, the day she gave birth and a year or two of raising a baby boy up until they were torn apart too, presumably. They would surely do nothing to deter her from wanting to his mother now, right? _But_ … what if she saw bad things too? Ichimaru leaving her because of him, nine months' worth of pregnancy symptoms, a painful delivery, loneliness and isolation with nothing but a crying, pooping blob for company… Toshiro inhaled sharply; Rangiku would see everything that she lost because of her choice to keep him. He hadn't been a blessing, he'd been a curse. She would realise that once she saw her memories again, and she wouldn't want to be his mother anymore.

"Simply hold it to your temple," Urahara instructed, "The orbs will recognise you, and absorb immediately into your brain. The original memories will overtake the false memoires Yoruichi gave you."

The prodigy felt a weight settle in his chest. He did not want Rangiku to see her memories, he did not want her to reject him, because she would once she realised just how much his existence had ruined her life and how much getting pregnant had cost her.

The snow white sphere was presented in front of Toshiro and the boy flicked his eyes up to see Isshin holding the small globe out for him to take. The white haired boy clenched his eyes immediately and shook his head; he didn't want those memories. He didn't want to know what it was like to have a real mother, especially if she ended up rejecting him based on what she might see in her own memories. Toshiro didn't want or need to feel that sort of hurt. It was hard to breathe just thinking about it.

Rangiku's fist in the back of his shirt released him and he opened his eyes long enough to see her take his memories from Isshin, and cradle his orb beside her own gently. Toshiro stared at the floor; he didn't want to know if anyone was looking at him, he didn't want them to see his face as he tried to will away his fears and emotional turmoil.

Urahara murmured something about leaving, and Isshin moved to show the scientist out. Once they were out of the room, Toshiro turned sharply back in the direction of the stairs and ran up two steps at a time. He heard Rangiku call out to him, but he did not look back. His face was hot, and he felt his blood pumping in his ears. He needed fresh air immediately, otherwise he was afraid he'd pass out.

He needed to breathe.

…

Toshiro sat on the roof, thoughts whizzing around his head at lightning speed. It wasn't an exaggeration either; he could control weather and knew exactly how fast lightning could strike. One part of his brain was still thinking over the memory orb situation, while the other part of his brain used his spiritual pressure to track everyone around him, as it usually did. In the Seireitei, he tracked mostly Rangiku and his squad members to make sure they were all doing their jobs (Rangiku rarely was), and other captains if they wandered with in his range. Here in Karakura Town, Toshiro tracked all four Kurosaki's and, of course, Rangiku as always. As a captain, his sense and range were very high, so he could even sense Ichigo and the twins while they were at school. He'd felt Ichigo's spiritual pressure spike a little a few minutes ago, but since the substitute had little to no control over his own pressure, Toshiro wasn't worried about it, and could still feel the steady thrum of the teenager's power as he gradually made his way home from school. Without following his spirit ribbon, the prodigy could only estimate their location, and sensed that Ichigo was still about eight blocks away. Rangiku, however, was much closer – so close, in fact, that he didn't need to track her anymore.

"There you are," Rangiku's voice sounded behind him, "Are you okay, sweetheart?"

Toshiro frowned, "I don't like 'sweetheart'."

"What about 'honey'?"

"No."

"Maybe 'Baby boy' then?"

"Absolutely not."

"Bubba?"

"Toshiro is fine, thank you," Toshiro hissed over his shoulder, glaring at the strawberry blonde woman as she climbed out of the attic skylight, her famous mischievous grin in place.

She giggled as she approached him, before dropping to sit on the edge of the Kurosaki rooftop beside him. The prodigy sighed, pulling his knees up to his chest and wrapping his arms around them. He'd had a total of twenty minutes of peace since Urahara had left, and in that time, the young captain had managed to calm down, although an uneasy feeling still lingered in the pit of his stomach, and the presence of his lieutenant had just made the ache in his heart resurface. Even on the roof in the fresh air, with the blue sky above him – which he could very easily turn black with snow clouds if he so desired – he still believed Rangiku would no longer want to be his mother if she saw her old memories again. Judging by the lack of change in her current persona, she definitely hadn't used the last twenty minutes to catch up on her past.

"I can call you that," Rangiku agreed, "I did name you that after all."

"Did you?" Toshiro frowned, his heart plummeting into his stomach; maybe she had taken her memories?

"I must have," Rangiku's face mimicked his expression, " _She_ said she left your name behind when she removed your memories, so I must have named you myself…"

Toshiro withheld a breath of relief; Rangiku had not looked at her memories, _thank the gods._

"You don't sound so confident," He murmured, and couldn't help the slight twitch of his mouth.

"Well, it's just that I always liked 'Takeo' for a boy," Rangiku muttered, her frown only deepening, "I can't remember why I would have changed my mind once you were born…"

"Do you not like 'Toshiro' then?" Toshiro asked; he was trying not to sound upset or offended, but it was his name, and she had given it to him, why would she give him a name she didn't like?

Rangiku's eyes had snapped immediately to him, her mouth slightly open.

"No, of course I like 'Toshiro'," She said quickly, "I love 'Toshiro', and I just wish I knew why I picked it, that's all."

The child prodigy looked away from her. He felt a hand slide into his thick, messy hair, and while he normally loved the feeling, his mood wasn't allowing him to appreciate the affection very much; it was only a matter of time before she checked those memories and started hating him. The more he thought about it, the worse he could see this situation becoming and each time felt more real than the last.

"Come on," Rangiku called him back, standing up and tugging at his arm gently, "Let's go inside. Ichigo and the girls should be home from school soon."

The girls were about ten minutes from being home, to be a little more precise, Toshiro noted as he felt the girls draw closer. Ichigo on the other hand, was still about eight blocks away, as he had apparently stopped for some reason.

The prodigy got to his feet slowly and turned to follow his second in command back into the house.

"And after dinner," Rangiku was babbling away, "I was thinking we could return our memories together…"

Toshiro stopped dead in his tracks. _No, no, no_ , she could not see her memories. She can't realise how much his birth had cost her.

"I don't think we should look at them," He announced bravely, and Rangiku whipped around to face him immediately.

"What?" She asked, her jaw dropped and eyes wide in shock, "But it's our memories! It's the memories of our time together when you were a baby, why don't you want to see that?"

 _Because he didn't want to remember what having a real mother felt like._

"I won't have any decent memories," Toshiro looked at his feet, "and I don't want you to see yours."

"Why not?"

 _Because she would reject him when she saw how much she had to give up because of him._

"It's an order, Matsumoto," He said, the captain's voice coming through, "We're not going to look at the memories; we are going to break them."

Rangiku opened her mouth to retort but if she had said anything, Toshiro hadn't heard it because at that very moment, Ichigo's spiritual power skyrocketed. The strawberry had just released his bankai. Toshiro hadn't been paying attention due to his soul focus being directed to Rangiku but he couldn't miss that change; Ichigo's bankai was almost suffocatingly powerful. Something wasn't right; Ichigo didn't release his bankai unless he was seriously struggling with his shikai alone, and on top of that, Toshiro recalled Ichigo telling him that he hadn't needed to do so since the end of the Winter War now that Karakura was mostly peaceful.

Toshiro drove his whole focus on the eighteen year old; the orange haired substitute was exactly seven blocks west of the house, and he was hurt – not life threatening but in need of help.

"Ichigo," Rangiku murmured beside him, obviously feeling the change too, which meant Isshin had probably felt it as well, and possibly even Karin, but she knew not to get involved now.

Toshiro spared a quick glance at Rangiku – she looked worried – before bursting out of his gigai. Black robes and a white haori flapped around him in the breeze, and the captain felt the familiar weight of Hyorinmaru on his back, the dragon's power thrumming gently against his spine.

"I'll go," Toshiro said simply, before running across the tiles and flash stepping off the edge, Rangiku's voice echoed behind him.

Rooftops appeared and disappeared beneath his feet as the prodigy practically flew towards Ichigo, flash stepping faster than he normally might have. As he neared the scene, he could feel a second spiritual pressure which was dark, evil and very powerful – not just a hollow, it was one of Aizen's surviving arrancars. The prodigy scowled; why hadn't he felt its' power before? The boy could hear the harsh sounds of glass shattering, metal crashing and wood snapping, as well as the screams of horrified civilians as they fled the scene.

When he arrived, he spotted Ichigo pulling himself out of a large crater in the road, blood pouring down the teen's face as he held the right side of his ribcage.

"Ichigo!" Toshiro called, flash stepping to the strawberry's side and helping the taller teen to stand, "What's going on?"

"Arrancar," Ichigo hissed through gritted teeth, "Invisible."

"Invisible?" the prodigy repeated, dumbstruck; arrancars had different powers based on their zanpakuto just as soul reapers did, but this was the first invisible one he'd ever encountered.

"He becomes visible when he's actually attacking," Ichigo explained, "But in between attacks, he turns invisible and moves again. I haven't been able to hold him long enough. I figured bankai would give me some extra speed."

Toshiro raised an eyebrow; given the state of the strawberry's bloodied appearance, his plan didn't look to be working very well.

"Two of you now," a high-pitched voice cackled behind Toshiro and the prodigy whipped around instantly, ripping his sword from its sheath, "This is certainly becoming an interesting fight…"

Toshiro glanced around wildly, but there was no sign of the speaker, just the destroyed buildings lining the street. He could feel the spiritual pressure around them but it was moving too quickly for him to pin point and strike.

Suddenly a blade was swinging down at him out of nowhere and the prodigy only just managed to bring his own sword up to block the attack, just centimetres from his face. Ichigo would have been sliced except that he had stumbled back when Toshiro released his hold on him.

When the blades had connected in a loud screech of metal on metal, a tall man had appeared holding the other sword. White robes clung to the tall, skinny frame, a bone mask covered half of his face, and long lavender braids spilled from the man's head. His uncovered eye was an unnerving scarlet red, while the eye staring at him through the mask was a startling white.

"Is that a captain's haori?" the arrancar's mouth twisted into a sickening grin, "Aren't you a little bit young, Kid?"

Toshiro growled, using all the upper body strength he could muster to push the blade away from him and turn the attack on the arrancar. Hyorinmaru's hilt grew colder as Toshiro slammed the arrancar away before pulling his sword back over his head and preparing to strike down upon Aizen's creation, but just in time, the hollow moved out of the way before vanishing in thin air.

"Oh, I know you," the arrancar's voice screeched again, but there was nobody to be seen, "You're that child prodigy captain, Hitsu-something, am I right?"

Toshiro clenched his jaw, and swung wildly in the direction of the voice, but unsurprisingly, his blade didn't come in contact with anything.

"Oh how Aizen used to rave about you," the voice called over his shoulder, and Toshiro turned immediately, using his blade to swipe the area.

This time his zanpakuto hit something and the image of the arrancar appeared before him. Once again their blades were connected and together they pushed forward, both trying to overpower the other. Toshiro wasn't strong physically, but Hyorinmaru often gave him a bit of a boost when he needed it, and more often than not, it was his power alone that eventually struck down his opponent, as well as his very advanced battle tactics.

"You were definitely Aizen's favourite," the arrancar's grin widened and his eyes shone brightly, "But that Ichimaru… boy, did he hate you."

The name caused Toshiro's blood to boil and he lashed out randomly, the arrancar disappearing once again before the blade could reach him. The prodigy continued to swing his blade around, hoping to hit something sooner or later. Menacing laughter filled thin air, and Toshiro charged after it; nothing but anger filling his thoughts. _He didn't care what Ichimaru had thought of him!_

The distinct sound of metal scraping against more metal echoed around the scene but there was no pressure on the boy's blade. He turned to see Ichigo back on his feet, his Zangetsu pushing the arrancar's sword into the earth just below where Toshiro's back had just been. Ichigo, who had very timely just saved his life, removed his blade off the arrancar's and swung again. This time the arrancar didn't disappear right away, but parried the attack quickly. Toshiro watched as they began to strike at each other in short quick movements.

It was the first time the arrancar had stayed visible longer than a few seconds, and Toshiro quickly analysed the man's fighting style. He was extremely fast in his movements, almost rivalling Ichigo's in bankai, but his strength lacked as much as Toshiro's did. The arrancar was skinny and agile, able to change directions in the blink of an eye. He was clearly left handed, but as Ichigo, Toshiro, and surely most of his opponents were right-handed and would automatically go for his right side, the arrancar seemed to leave his left side unguarded in order to protect his vulnerable side. It worked well enough, since it would have been a bit of an awkward reach for Ichigo to strike under the hollow's fighting arm, especially since their shoulders were level height-wise. Toshiro, on the other hand, was at the perfect level to strike.

He waited patiently for the arrancar to be looking away from him long enough, but since he knew Toshiro was still in the background, he seemed to divert his eyes between the prodigy and the substitute in order to keep an eye on them both. Toshiro knew he only had one good shot at this; if the arrancar knew he'd spotted the unguarded area before he'd managed to land a decent blow, he would become a lot more protective of it, and the young captain might not find the chance to find another.

Fortunately, the time came soon enough, and the arrancar's full focus was on Ichigo as the eighteen year old suddenly used some of his famous bankai speed to swing his thin blade down on his opponent. The arrancar only just managed to look up in time to stop it, and Toshiro used the distraction to make his move.

In one swift move, Toshiro felt satisfaction roll over him as Hyorinmaru pierced the arrancar's unprotected left side deeply. He even twisted his sword for a bit of good measure, causing the lavender-haired man to scream in agony. The prodigy ripped his sword out of the hollow's body, and the arrancar disappeared again. The injury wouldn't be enough to kill their enemy, but Toshiro knew it would, at the very least, slow him down and weaken him. He hoped, however unrealistically, that the arrancar would retreat now knowing he was no match for both the captain and the substitute. He was barely a match for one of them, to be honest, but his knack for invisibility made him trickier to kill than the average arrancar.

"Ichigo! Toshiro!"

The boys turned to see Isshin and Rangiku dropping down from the nearest rooftop into the destructed street, both of them in their soul forms.

"Dad!" Ichigo exclaimed, "What are you doing here? You're not powerful enough yet!"

"My power is growing back steadily," Isshin moved straight to Ichigo's side and begun inspecting his son's injuries, "Is it one of those arrancars?"

"An invisible one," Toshiro answered, after Ichigo's own response was turned into a hiss of pain as his doctor father placed pressure against one of his bleeding head wounds.

"Invisible?" Rangiku repeated, just as Toshiro had when he found out and the prodigy nodded quickly to confirm his statement. Rangiku sighed, running her fingers through her long blonde hair, "Well that makes things a bit more difficult, doesn't it?"

"Just a little," Ichigo groaned, "But he becomes visible during attacks and I also noticed he flickers visible every few seconds or so while moving,"

"Flickers?" Toshiro asked; he hadn't noticed any 'flickering'.

"Yeah, I noticed while he was fighting you," Ichigo informed him, "That's why he has to move so quickly, so that when he flickers, he's already gone from the last place you were looking."

"So after he talks…" Toshiro murmured, remembering how every time the arrancar said something, the prodigy would look in that direction, but by then the hollow would have moved, so he hadn't noticed his image flicker, "And that's how you knew he was going for my back before you intervened?"

Ichigo nodded, "If I wasn't in bankai, I wouldn't have made it in time…"

Toshiro reached forward and grabbed Ichigo's arm gently; he wasn't good with 'thank you's' or emotions but he hoped his small gesture would translate across to the strawberry. Thankfully, Ichigo wasn't an idiot all the time – he was actually very good at reading people, and seemed to understand Toshiro's message, putting a large warm hand over Toshiro's tiny cold one, and squeezing gently.

"Four of you now, eh?" that screeching voice returned, and Toshiro eyes tried to take in as much space either side of where he had heard the voice in order to see the man as he moved, "That's not fair."

 _There!_ Toshiro saw what Ichigo meant when he said 'flickering' image; the arrancar became visible again for less than a second, his body moving away from where he had spoken, and Toshiro knew exactly where he was going to stop to speak again. Ichigo's eyes followed his own pattern, but Isshin and Rangiku were still looking around hopelessly.

"The orange strawberry and the itty bitty captain have called for mummy and daddy, have they?" the arrancar teased, his voice echoing as he moved, "Who are my newest opponents then? Mr Muscles, and… oh my… I don't date soul reapers, but lady, you have an amazing ra-"

The arrancar's perverted talk was interrupted suddenly when Isshin attacked him outright, boldly slicing down where he'd heard the voice and managing to hit his target. Toshiro watched in awe as his former captain didn't even give the arrancar a chance to disappear again, constantly swinging his sword and throwing punches, just to keep the arrancar busy.

"Oh, did I step on some toes?" the arrancar fought back, although Toshiro could see how much weaker the injury on his left side was making him, "Has somebody got a crush on the pretty lady?"

Isshin hit back harder, and Toshiro paused for a second; did he have a crush on Rangiku? He shared a glance with Ichigo who looked as confused as he felt and together they looked towards Rangiku, who was blushing furiously, but also staring hard at the fight, like she couldn't take her eyes of it. _Oh…_

One of Isshin's punches hit so hard that the arrancar stumbled back a few steps, and he used the distance to turn invisible once more before Isshin could slice down with his zanpakuto. The former Shiba let loose some colourful vocabulary, which Toshiro had heard because Rangiku hadn't been fast enough in covering his ears that time, but she found some time to snap at the older Kurosaki for 'cursing in front of the children' to which both Ichigo and Toshiro had responded with 'I'm not a child.'

"You're our children," Isshin murmured, patting Ichigo on the back as he returned to the group, "Eighteen or not."

"What about ninety-eight?" Toshiro offered; If he was human, he'd have lived, married, and died by now, or at the very least, could be enjoying a beer – he heard they were good – in a wheel chair, while telling his great granddaughter about the latest gossip in the retirement home.

"Ninety-six," Rangiku corrected, "and no, you're even younger, Tosh, you've got at least another hundred years before you're an adult to me."

Toshiro groaned; _he was a captain, god damn it!_

"Um, can we kill this hollow today please?" Ichigo clicked at them, reminding them they were still in a pretty dangerous situation, "I have a Skype date tonight."

Toshiro didn't know what a 'Skype date' was but it must have involved some fancy way for Ichigo to see Orihime even though she was still in Cambodia.

"Alright team, why don't we spread out so we have eyes on the whole area," Isshin chuckled, "Let's not keep Orihime waiting too long."

"Call out if you see anything," Toshiro added, agreeing with the former captain's idea.

Ichigo huffed, stalking off in one direction, while Isshin laughed as he walked the opposite way. Toshiro rolled his eyes at the Kurosaki men's antics before taking the South-West corner, and Rangiku gently whispered for him to 'stay safe' before she took up the final corner.

 _You too_ , he had replied soundlessly.

They had watched the area for almost half an hour before they eventually gave up. They'd seen nothing nor heard anything from the arrancar, and Toshiro could feel his spiritual pressure receding as he either began to leave the scene or grew weaker from the injury Hyorinmaru had bestowed upon him. Ichigo had actually made the suggestion to give up and go home four times now, and Rangiku had recommended it three times, but Toshiro knew Isshin was still as much on edge as he himself was; it's not in a hollow's nature to retreat, and even though arrancars were much smarter, Toshiro had a strong feeling this one wouldn't back down; he'd come looking for a tougher fight, and he'd found it. As they dropped down from their posts and walked back down to meet in the middle, Toshiro could only hope he was right about the arrancar being too weak to carry on.

He was wrong.

A flash of colour caught his eye and Toshiro froze.

The arrancar's image had flickered near Isshin, and Ichigo had seen it too, calling out to his father and flash stepping to intercept the attack. The substitute had been wrong though, and Toshiro knew it; it was a trap, or maybe a distraction. The arrancar now knew they knew about his flickering dilemma and had managed to keep himself hidden, possibly behind or under some of the rubble while they had spread out, but now that their guards were down as they gave up the fight, he had attacked.

Toshiro had to think quicker than he'd ever thought in his life; if the arrancar had flickered knowingly in the line of sight of Ichigo and Toshiro, heading towards Isshin, then he would've known that they would have rushed to the black haired man's side, just as Ichigo had, but the arrancar wasn't stupid enough to go up against Ichigo again, especially with Isshin right beside him, so he would have used his incredible agility to turn and attack someone else while they were busy. Toshiro was too far away for the arrancar to have him as a first choice, and he might have thought Toshiro would run to save Isshin, which meant that the arrancar's target was not him, and it was not Isshin or Ichigo…

The young prodigy immediately took off in the direction he knew he'd find the arrancar, the blood draining rapidly from his face.

"Mum!" Toshiro screamed.

He flash stepped and landed in front of his mother, just as the arrancar became visible again and slashed at his prey. Toshiro knew he had no time to block the strike, and clenched his eyes as he felt the tip of the sword slash through his uniform from his right shoulder to his left hip. When he opened his eyes again, he couldn't feel any pain but it felt like the world had stopped around him for a split second. The arrancar stepped back and looked at him with a satisfied grin, he could see Isshin and Ichigo's horrified expressions across the destruction of the street, and as he turned to look at his mother, Rangiku's eyes were wide and staring at the slash in his uniform. Toshiro glanced down at his chest and inhaled sharply; the sword had indeed ripped open more than just his robes.

As soon as he saw the wound, the pain hit him full force and blood seemed to practically spurt out of him. He doubled over, falling towards the ground, his name screamed by three different voices echoing around him.

…

 **Bit of déjà vu for anyone who has read my Autumn story, sorry about that ahahhah Tosh is just too protective, what can I say? It's been a long week, my friends D:**

 **PLEASE REVIEW XOXO**


	4. Choice

Chapter Four: Choice

 _No!_

 _This could not be happening._

Rangiku dropped to her knees, reaching out to the white haired boy who lay unmoving on the pavement. Everything had gone silent except the sound of her own heart beat and the blood pumping quickly in her ears.

"Toshiro," She choked, crawling over to the boy.

She rolled over her son, his eyes were clenched shut, his body limp, and blood – _so much blood_ – was spreading over his chest far too rapidly. She slid an arm under his knees and another around the back of his shoulders, lifting him up effortlessly.

 _He weighed so little._

The strawberry blonde fell back onto her butt, crossing her legs and placing the young prodigy into her lap. She cradled him close, ripping off her scarf and using it to apply pressure to his wound, but the gash was too long and too deep. Her pink scarf was turning dark red, and so was the once pristine white captain's haori.

 _He was so small._

She stared at his face; it had gone so pale. She whipped away the dirt on his cheek from when he'd fallen to the ground, and her finger ran over his bottom lip gently. Rangiku reached out and touched the boy's temple.

 _Her son._

As if feeling her familiar touch, Toshiro's eyes opened a little; two normally glorious teal orbs were dull in colour and watery. Rangiku pressed a kiss to his forehead, but when she looked back down, his eyes were closed again, head lolling lifelessly against her forearm.

She found his hand, cold and pale, and squeezed, just praying that he'd squeeze back. He didn't.

"Toshiro," she sobbed, tears flooding her eyes.

...

 _Rangiku leapt over rooftops at a speed she'd never travelled at before; she could feel two very familiar spiritual pressures exploding dangerously ahead of her. They were both becoming significantly weaker as the battle raged on and Rangiku knew that neither fighter was going to give up; in the end, one of them was going to kill the other._

 _She had to stop it._

 _The strawberry blonde flash stepped over Karakura, her heart beating impossibly fast and it wasn't due to the sudden strenuous exercise. Rangiku drew closer to the powerful battle, landing on a rooftop and gazing down at the two soul reapers on the road below._

 _Her captain, so cute and small, was hurt badly; the young boy shakily pulled himself out of a giant crater in the asphalt._

" _Captain!" Rangiku called, reaching a hand out helplessly to the ice wielder._

 _Toshiro didn't hear her, but his opponent did._

 _Venomous red eyes turned on her and a sickly grin widened._

" _This is for your own good, Ran," Gin tilted his head, his voice only just reaching her ears, "Once he's gone, we can be a family again."_

 _Dumbstruck, Rangiku watched through wide eyes as her former lover turned back to the white-haired captain who was using his zanpakuto for support. Gin didn't look much better, with blood gushing out of his head and lip and an obvious limp, but Toshiro could barely stand, and the fox-faced traitor had a steely look of murderous determination._

 _Gin drew his sword and Rangiku screamed out as he leapt towards her precious captain._

 _..._

The sound of battle came rushing back into her eardrums full force and everything seemed to speed up around her. She heard the distinctive sounds of sword piercing through flesh and an agony-filled scream. Hot blood splattered against her face and she looked up just in time to see the evil arrancar disappearing, Zangetsu's blade all the way through his heart, and his hollow mask dropping on to the road in front of her with a dull thud.

Tears were pouring from her eyes now as she held her son in her arms; bleeding and limp. Isshin was at her side in seconds and doing his best to stop the bleeding. He ripped open Toshiro's robes and the full extent of the injury was revealed.

Rangiku practically howled when she saw it; a deep gash from her son's shoulder to his opposite hip, far too big for his size.

"Ran, stay with me," Isshin called out to her, "Keep the pressure over his shoulder, I'm going to try healing the bottom where it's deeper."

Healing the-?

Pressing harder against Toshiro's shoulder, she watched – her mind completely blank – as Isshin's hands started to glow over the wound; healing kido. Never had Rangiku been so ashamed at herself for only knowing the bare minimum of healing kido; she couldn't even remember the incantations. She did her best to concentrate, trying to pour all her power and knowledge into her hands. A soft green light began to grow in her hands but it went out just as quickly. She tried again and again and again, her light constantly going out before she could feel her son's flesh knitting back together.

'Concentrate,' Haineko purred in her mind – it was very rare for her zanpakuto to talk to her since they didn't agree on anything, 'Save your son.'

 _Save Toshiro._

Rangiku focused; her baby boy was injured. She needed to save him. She didn't have a lot of healing knowledge or practise behind her but if she could help Isshin – who was beginning to look extremely exhausted on his end – then she might just be able to close the wound enough to make it less life-threatening.

 _Toshiro_ , she thought to herself, _save Toshiro._

Her hand lit up again and this time she managed to focus enough that she actually felt it working, slowly but surely stopping the bleeding and repairing the muscle damage deep down. After only a few minutes the light died again and Rangiku was unable to conure it back.

"The bleeding has stopped," Ichigo was now crouching by Toshiro's head between her and his father, "Save your strength, Dad, you're more useful as a human doctor now."

Rangiku glanced up at Isshin as the man nodded and pulled back his hands from the little captain's hip. The cut was still there but it was far less deep and skinnier too. The black haired man's forehead was beaded with sweat and his eyes had grown tired, aging him immensely. It was obvious the man had still not regained his strength from his captain days; he was fifth seat level at best now.

"You're right," Isshin panted before his eyes met Rangiku's, "We've healed him all we can with kido and it's saved his life, but we need to get him back to the clinic where I can patch him up more."

"We saved him?" Rangiku asked through a strangled sob, her eyes filling with hope.

Isshin nodded, glancing down at the boy in her arms and touching his cheek softly, "It was very close, but yes, he'll survive. I have to treat the wound properly to stop infection, however."

Relief overcame the strawberry blonde lieutenant and she sobbed once again; the emotion of the battle overwhelming her; the fear, the concentration, the hope, the relief… She continued to rock Toshiro, pressing another kiss to his forehead.

Both Isshin and Ichigo offered to carry Toshiro back to the house, but Rangiku refused them. He was her son, her boy to protect, and she was his mother; she would carry him. As she stood, the lieutenant realised just how exhausted she was from using that tiny bit of healing kido, and forced back the urge just to collapse on the ground and go to sleep; Toshiro might have survived but he was still very hurt and very prone to an infection. So she marched off in the direction of the Kurosaki house, her precious cargo locked securely in her arms, and willing herself to stay upright.

…

 _The sickening sound of metal piercing flesh echoed in Rangiku's ears._

 _She glanced at Toshiro who was staring, eyes wide and horror etched on his face. Gin stared too, eyes open for once and his expression confused, but he wasn't looking at her like Toshiro was, instead he was looking down at his own chest where a blood-covered blade stuck out obtrusively._

 _Shock registered on all three of their faces._

 _Rangiku looked down to find herself holding the sword that had impaled the man that was once the love of her life, and with a startling realisation, she noticed the blade was her Haineko._

 _With no idea what else to do, she let go of the hilt. She heard a high pitched scream and later realised it was her own. Gin fell forward onto his front, his face turned to the side and the katana still lodged in his back. She could see the colour leaving his face, and the tears in his eyes._

 _He was dying._

 _Tears welled up in her own eyes as she dropped to her knees beside her ex-partner's body. Red watery eyes flickered up to her as she rolled him onto his side; the blood had soaked all through his white robes._

" _Y-you picked him," Gin stuttered as his breath began to leave him._

 _Rangiku glanced over her shoulder at her small captain who was still frozen in the same sport as he watched the scene in front of him unfold._

" _Yes, I did," Rangiku answered, glancing back to the man on the ground._

 _She had chosen between them and it honestly didn't surprise her that she'd picked her captain. Gin was once a kind and loving man but he'd turned bitter, twisted and evil; she could never choose a man like that._

 _More tears fell from both hers and Gin's eyes, and the lieutenant looked down to see the man she once loved and didn't feel anything affectionate at all for him. He wasn't the same man she fell in love with._

" _I l-love y-you," Gin choked between final breaths._

 _As evil as he'd become, she could tell he wasn't lying. He did love her, or the closest thing he could have ever felt to love._

" _Goodbye, Gin," She murmured as the dying man's chest stopped moving and his eyes completely glazed over._

 _She could have told him she loved him too, even though it was a lie, so that he would have died hearing what he had so desperately wanted to hear, but Rangiku couldn't do it to herself. Call her selfish, but she didn't owe anything to that man anymore; he had hurt her too many times and he'd hurt an innocent boy because he somehow thought Toshiro was the reason their relationship had fallen to pieces. Gin was a smart man – twisted, but intelligent – he would have sensed the lie too if she'd said it; her actions spoke louder and more honestly – it had been instinct to protect her captain that had her leaping into the battle and killing her old boyfriend with her own blade._

 _She'd had been surprised at first, but in reality, her decision to protect Toshiro from anyone and everyone had been made a long time ago._

 _Slowly, she stood up and tried not to think too hard as she pulled Haineko out of Gin's now lifeless body._

 _At some point, Toshiro's injuries had won out and Rangiku turned to find her captain slumped against the pavement, unconscious. The lieutenant grimaced, sheathing her bloodied sword and moving to the boy. She hoisted him up against her side, pausing to run her hand through his hair as he groaned softly in pain. Shifting to make him more comfortable against her, Rangiku flash stepped back up to the rooftop and towards Orihime's; she'd get the human girl to heal her captain before they went home._

 _There had never been a choice…not really; it had always been Toshiro._

…

Ichigo leant against the door frame, watching silently as Rangiku sat by her son's bedside, one hand running repeatedly through Toshiro's snow white hair and the other holding his hand gently. They'd moved the boy back to the spare bedroom after Isshin had patched up the rest of his wound. The doctor and father of three had been reluctant to use stitches as they'd be able to use kido to heal the wound a little each day which should be more than enough to get Toshiro through to Monday when he and Rangiku would return to the Soul Society and could visit Unohana. Alternatively, they could visit Urahara and Tessai in the morning but Ichigo was certain Toshiro wouldn't want to do that. It was times like these that Ichigo realised how much Orihime's power was taken for granted – if she wasn't still overseas, Toshiro would be up and having dinner with the rest of the family right now.

Toshiro hadn't regained consciousness yet, and Isshin expected him to be out most of the night, but as Ichigo watched from the doorway, he saw the boy frown and murmur something softly to Rangiku.

"I'm here, Sweetheart," Rangiku whispered softly back, her hand coming down to cup his cheek gently, "Shhh, you're okay, go back to sleep."

Ichigo raised an eyebrow and waited a few beats to see if the little captain would respond again. He didn't.

"Did he wake up?" Ichigo asked, stepping into the room.

Rangiku glanced up and smiled softly, although he could still see the faint tear tracks on her cheeks.

"No, he just mumbles in his sleep a lot," she answered, turning back to gaze down at her son, "More so when he's on painkillers."

Both she and Ichigo grimaced at that last bit.

"I usually can't understand him," the lieutenant continued, lips tugging back up into a small smile, "But occasionally I hear him saying my name. A few times I've heard him ask for 'Mum'…"

"One in the same now," Ichigo murmured, grinning a little.

"It's weird though," Rangiku tilted her head, eyes narrowing a little to regard her son, "He never knew he had a mother, so why would he ask for one in his sleep?"

"A subconscious need maybe," Ichigo shrugged, "He probably just wanted one."

"Yeah, I guess," the lieutenant sighed softly and began adjusting the sheets around the small body on the bed.

The white haired boy was still very pale from all the blood loss and he seemed to look smaller and more fragile than Ichigo had ever seen him. He could recall their first meeting, when the substitute had been so thrown that a ten year old boy could be a soul reaper, let alone a captain. He thought it was ridiculous and unsafe; there was no way a child should have a weapon like that strapped to their back. He'd be proven wrong, of course; Toshiro was very powerful and very mature, he had a better handle on things than most grown-ups did and he was a very capable leader. Ichigo had almost forgotten he was a child as many soul reapers seemed to as well; Rukia and Renji had never referred to Toshiro as anything other than a powerful captain. The orange haired teenager could see how wrong they all were; Toshiro was a child, a strong and powerful child but a child nonetheless. It was highlighted more than ever now as Ichigo gazed down to the prone form tucked into the bed, his top half almost completely wrapped in bandages, and his mother hovering constantly by his side.

"He loves you very much," Ichigo whispered, placing a hand on Rangiku's shoulder and squeezing it a little.

Rangiku smiled sadly, "Did you hear him call out to me before the arrancar attacked?"

Ichigo nodded quickly, "He called you 'Mum'."

The lieutenant nodded back, sniffling and wiping her nose on her uniform sleeve; she hadn't changed back into her gigai yet just as Toshiro hadn't been returned to his.

"I should have seen it coming," Rangiku said thickly, "I knew he was worried about us fighting together. He was scared I'd get hurt."

"That might have been my fault," Ichigo sighed, taking a seat beside Rangiku, "I told him how my mother died saving my life… and obviously he decided he didn't want that fate for you."

"I've heard about your mother, Ichigo," the strawberry blonde woman said, turning to face him, "She was brave and smart. Your life was worth more than hers in her eyes, and I think when you become a parent one day, you'll understand why she did it. She was a good mother."

"I should have done what Toshiro did," Ichigo murmured; he might not have survived but at least his mother would be okay and the twins could have her still.

"You would have broken her heart then," Rangiku said, her voice harder than normal, "Toshiro shouldn't have done what he did. I should have been the one to protect him; I'm his mother."

"He wasn't under attack though," a new voice sounded at the door and they turned to see Isshin frowning in the threshold, "If it was him who was the target, it might have been a different story."

"It doesn't matter," Rangiku clenched her jaw, "I should have protected him."

"No offense, Ran," Isshin chuckled, breaking the solemn mood for a second, "But Toshiro is smarter than the three of us combined; he knew exactly what was going to happen way before any of us could have worked it out and he moved on instinct."

"Bloody prodigy," Ichigo added, grinning a little and poking Rangiku softly in the ribs, hoping to pull a small smile out of her.

Slowly, Rangiku's mouth twitched as she tried to resist the urge to grin too.

"I blame his father," she rolled her eyes and the three of them chuckled despite the morbid situation.

Ichigo barely knew Gin Ichimaru, only encountering him very briefly in the war given that most of his focus had been on Aizen, but he had heard that the silver haired traitor was a genius like Toshiro and once hailed a child prodigy in his youth. Now that they knew of Toshiro's parentage it wasn't hard to see where the little captain got his intelligence and ability to pick up any new skill from. Fortunately, Toshiro clearly didn't get Gin's evil nature; he had his father's brain but his mother's heart. Toshiro was protective, caring and –although he rarely showed it – sensitive, just as Rangiku was.

"I blame the bastard too," Isshin smirked, stepping into the room and coming forward to adjust some of Toshiro's bandages.

Ichigo watched with a slight frown as his father and Rangiku made eye contact and shared small smiles between them. Isshin even leant forward to touch the lieutenant's cheek and used his thumb to wipe away the half-dried tear tracks. It was a small gesture but it was incredibly intimate and Ichigo hadn't seen his father look at anyone like that since his mother died. The substitute tilted his head slightly as he recalled the arrancar's teasing jibes and the two adults' reactions.

 _Oh…_

Isshin and Rangiku… Ichigo wasn't sure how he felt about that just yet. He supposed there was nothing _wrong_ with it. His mother had been gone a long time and Rangiku was a very beautiful woman… and of course, they'd once shared a life together, running a division and raising a young third seat between them.

Still it was very weird, especially as he watched his father lean down and press a light kiss to Rangiku's forehead.

"Alright, I'm just gonna… go?" Ichigo mumbled, promptly getting to his feet and ignoring the odd looks from the two adults.

He turned swiftly and exited the room without looking back.

 _It was so weird._

…

It was well after midnight now and Rangiku couldn't sleep. She couldn't even lie down. The thought of missing something while she was asleep, such as a change in her son's condition, was terrifying. Isshin had told her not to worry, that Toshiro would be out until mid-morning and that he was in a stable condition, but it did little to calm her. The boy had woken up just over an hour ago but he'd be completely out of it, extremely groggy and in quite a bit of pain; Isshin had given him another dose of the painkillers to help him get back to sleep and the drugs were expected to last for several hours.

The Squad Ten lieutenant gazed down at her son and sighed. She'd never considered the hard parts of being a mother; worrying all the time, seeing her child upset or hurt… she'd definitely never thought that if she ever became a mother, she'd have to watch her child be slashed across the chest right in front of her. Not for the first time that week, Rangiku wondered how her life – and Toshiro's – could have been different if they'd never been torn apart. They could have had a wonderful life together; peaceful, happy – it would have been just the two of them. They would have lived out in the Rukongai somewhere; she would have made sure he would have had enough food to eat too, even if she had to steal it or flirt for it.

The woman's eyes flickered to the bedside table on her side of the bed. Inside the top drawer, wrapped protectively in a few pairs of socks, were her memories. The temptation had been insane; ever since she'd laid her eyes on them when they'd sat innocently enough in Urahara's hands, she'd wanted to know what that ash-coloured orb had contained. It spoke to her; she remembered the gentle hum she felt as she took it into her hands as if it knew her, like they were old friends reuniting for the first time in years. Technically, it wasn't far from the truth. Toshiro's reaction had been a surprise; his blatant refusal to even touch his snow coloured memory orb, running out of the room and hiding on the roof, and then of course, suggesting they break the globes without having ever seen their memories. Rangiku didn't understand; why wouldn't he want to remember? Why didn't he want her to remember?

Standing up, Rangiku rounded the bed and opened the drawer of her nightstand. She picked out the swirling grey orb before closing the drawer again. There was another initial vibration as the globe touched her skin, and she looked into it. She couldn't see much, just shadows flickering briefly through the ash. The temptation returned, coursing through her veins; she could was literally one small arm movement away from seeing her true past – the moment she found out she was pregnant, giving birth, holding baby Toshiro for the first time, his first words, his first steps…. Rangiku glanced at her sleeping son and sighed; she wanted to remember so badly, but he really didn't want her too. Would it be going behind his back if she did it? It had been _an order_. On the other hand, this was a personal matter and has far as she was concerned, she was the boss in their private lives now; he got to be a captain at work but at home, she was the parent. Still, it was hard to look into her son's pale face as he lay injured due to saving her life and then do the exact opposite of what he wanted.

Rangiku sighed again and decided perhaps a cup of tea would clear her mind, Toshiro should be okay for a few minutes on his own.

Making her way down to the kitchen, Rangiku was surprised to find Isshin still up, hovering by the kettle and two mugs.

"Still up?" Rangiku asked softly, leaning against the bench.

"Can't sleep," Isshin murmured, "Figured you'd be up too and could use a cup of tea…"

The busty blonde grinned lazily, "You read my mind."

Isshin returned her grin before turning back to the mugs. He poured the hot water in and stirred them quickly before handing Rangiku one of them; the lieutenant raised an eyebrow at the design which read '#1 Mum'. It was clearly once a gift from one of the Kurosaki children to their mother and although the woman in question had long since passed, the mug was clearly regularly used, with years-worth of tea stains inside and a chip or two along the rim. She glanced at Isshin questioningly.

"Seemed appropriate," the man shrugged nonchalantly before he brought his own cup – coincidently the matching '#1 Dad' mug – to his lips, blowing on the steaming liquid gently and taking a small sip. A cheeky smile played at his lips as he withdrew the mug from his mouth.

Rangiku felt her cheeks heat a little and she looked away quickly; the past few days in the Kurosaki home had reawakened some old feelings in her heart. Maybe it was just the shock of becoming a mother and the suddenly all too real idea that she was getting the little family she'd always wanted that was causing her to feel this way. Maybe it was the reminder that Isshin had always protected her and Toshiro while Gin, _the backstabbing evil leech,_ had gone as far as to hand them over to Central Forty-Six – and action that was to ultimately end in his own son's death. Rangiku could blame a lot of reasons, but she couldn't change the rising emotions; her heart longed for Isshin. He was handsome, reliable, funny, and already a father figure to Toshiro – he just had this way of making Rangiku feel like she was the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen.

She'd also quite enjoyed the last few days of domestic bliss; she'd finally seen what it was like to have a real family. From the moment she woke up, finding her son curled up against the window reading his skeleton book and convincing him to come down and eat some breakfast as its 'the most important meal of the day'. Night time was her favourite time though, as she once again convinced her son to eat – and in particular his vegetables – and then the nightly disagreement on his bed time would soon follow. Isshin would try and get the twins to bed around the same time and usually a full blown argument would arise when Karin questioned why her older brother wasn't subject to such a rule despite that he was still in school too. After tackling the kids, she and Isshin would meet downstairs for a well-deserved cup of tea and a romantic comedy movie.

Isshin had appeared to be struggling with some similar emotions too; he hadn't exactly expressed any feelings, but he'd been so touchy feely with her over the last few days and like the old flirt she'd crushed on back in the early days of her lieutenancy, but this time it seemed genuine. Last night even, he'd put an arm around her shoulders and pulled her close as they watched their movie, like they were in some kind of long-term relationship. He'd also been amazing to her during their stay when it came to her mother insecurities and unsureness. She had particularly valued his company that evening when he sat by Toshiro's side with her.

"You're planning on seeing your old memories tonight then?" Isshin asked, nodding his head towards the ash globe in Rangiku's hand.

"I want to," Rangiku bit her lip softly, "I really want to."

"What's stopping you?"

"Toshiro didn't want me to see them," she answered, her brow dipping into a frown, "He didn't say why, but he wanted to break both of our globes…"

Isshin didn't look remotely surprised, Rangiku found as she held the man's gaze. In fact, he seemed to nod subtly to himself as if he had expected this the whole time. The strawberry blonde arched an eyebrow in his direction, silently demanding an explanation.

Isshin sighed, "I'm just making a guess here, but if I have learned anything from Toshiro at all it's that his first assumption is always that people hate him."

"I know that," Rangiku stared at him, "He has such low self-confidence from being bullied throughout his time in Junrinan and in the academy. It only got worse when you left, by the way…"

Isshin grimaced, "I thought I'd made it clear to our Squad that it wouldn't be tolerated."

"It wasn't Squad Ten who did it," Rangiku muttered bitterly, remembering how almost all of the other divisions had laughed when a young child had donned the famous white captain's haori and the vile nicknames that followed, "But I don't see what Toshiro's lack of esteem has to do with these memories?"

"I think he'd probably worried about what you'll see in your memories," Isshin shrugged, frowning into his tea cup, "He probably thinks you'll reject him for some reason."

"Reject him?" the lieutenant squawked, "I could never do that!"

"I know that," Isshin assured her quickly, "But this is Toshiro we're talking about. This is what he does; he assumes that every little thing can turn someone against him… even you, Ran. He lost you once and if this afternoon proved anything, he is absolutely terrified of it happening again."

Rangiku looked at her feet quickly, tears filling her eyes as quick as guilt filled her heart and she desperately tried to blink them back; she'd cried too many times this week. She was a mother now, and she needed to be strong for her son.

Isshin sighed and she heard him place his tea on the kitchen bench before closing the distance between them and pulling her into a tight hug.

"I think you should see your memories," Isshin whispered, "I know you won't love Toshiro any less, but you need to be prepared to see some bad memories too. You're going to see Gin and you're going to remember what it was like to go through pregnancy alone."

Rangiku took a deep, shaky breath. In truth, she had considered those things too, but she found herself not caring as she looked at her brave little soldier son. Of course there had been some tough times during her single motherhood but the ultimate result was Toshiro and nothing could compare to that; no amount of fear, or sadness, or even loneliness. _She had a son._

"I know," she murmured, "But I need to see my memories. I need to know that I was a good mother once and I need to tell Toshiro why I chose his name. It might seem silly but it's important to me."

Isshin loosened his hold on her and stepped back. They held their eye contact for several beats and icy blue pierced right through chocolate brown. The former captain nodded in agreement.

Taking another deep breath, Rangiku brought the smokey sphere to the side of her temple.

"Wish me luck," she said finally, a nervous smile twitching on her face.

Rangiku pressed the memory globe to her skin.

...

" _Would you like to meet your son?"_

 _Rangiku's tired eyes widened as the small bundle was handed to her. She reached out, taking it into her arms and staring down at a tiny little body. A baby – her baby – wrapped in blankets, tinier than she could have ever imagined. She could barely feel him as she held him in her arms._

 _He weighed so little._

 _She rocked him gently. He'd been cleaned, the cord had been cut, and she thought he was the most beautiful creature she'd ever set her eyes upon. So little and cute, making soft gurgling noises. He'd come early into the world – much earlier than she'd been expecting – but he was still healthy._

 _He was so small._

 _Rangiku reached out and touched the boy's face, her fingers running gently over his tiny nose, his petite lips and up over his still closed eyelids before stopping at his temple. He was gorgeous, and he was hers._

 _Her son._

 _She leant down and planted a gentle kiss on the baby's little forehead, and when she looked back down, she saw a set of the most breathtaking teal eyes staring up at curiously. They were so big compared with the rest of his facial features, and they were absolutely gorgeous. She'd never seen teal eyes before and she wasn't even sure where he'd inherited them from, but she knew that she'd never get over looking into them._

 _One little arm was outside the blankets, and Rangiku felt tiny fingers trying to squeeze her finger. She honestly could not imagine a more precious being than this little baby. With a small hand holding her finger and bright teal eyes staring up at her adoringly, Rangiku was in love._

" _Toshiro," She murmured, and the boy's eyes seemed to grow wider as if knowing his name._

…

 **Happy Mother's Day, Rangiku!**

 **At least I know it's mother's day here in Australia and also in the US (?)**

 **Please review! :)**


	5. Remember When

**Goodness me, I'm so sorry fam! I was supposed to have this up last weekend but I was very distracted with my uni exams and being sucked into the** _ **Yuri on Ice**_ **fandom (blame LethanWolf xD)**

…

Chapter Five: Remember When

 _Rangiku waited nervously for Gin to arrive. It had been months since the last time she'd seen him on that rainy morning back at her little hut. Today they would be meeting down by a nearby stream instead; in his letters, Gin had expressed surprise at Rangiku's suggestion to meet out in public but the strawberry blonde had argued that the stream was hardly public since it was such an isolated area. The area was of significant meaning to the both of them; it was where they had met as kids, where they had grown up, and where they had shared their first kiss._

 _It was only fitting that it be the location of their last._

 _At least Rangiku assumed it would be their last kiss; she had some news for the silver haired man and she was quite certain he wasn't going to be pleased, especially not after the last time he had visited her._

" _You look beautiful."_

 _Rangiku glanced up from the gently bubbling stream to see her lover leaning against a thick tree trunk and smiling – although he was always smiling – at her contentedly, as if he'd been watching her sit by the water for several minutes._

 _Forcing a shaky smile of her own, Rangiku stood as Gin moved towards her. He pulled her into his arms and against his chest. He smelled wonderful. Rangiku closed her eyes and inhaled the scent that had always been of comfort to her and savoured it in her mind._

 _Why did he have to smell so good?_

 _It was going to be harder to let him go now, but Rangiku couldn't draw away from those warm arms. To make matters worse, Gin hooked a finger under her chin and drew their lips together._

 _Maybe, just maybe… Gin wouldn't leave her?_

 _Maybe he would stay and help her, uniting their family like she'd always dreamed._

" _I've missed you," Gin mumbled against her, breaking the kiss to press his lips to her forehead lightly._

" _I've missed you too," Rangiku admitted, the nervousness boiling in her stomach again, "But I- um, I have something I need to tell you."_

 _Gin tilted his head questioningly but his forever present smile didn't so much as twitch. Shuffling awkwardly on her feet and staring hard at the knot of his obi, Rangiku repeated the words over and over in her head, willing herself to speak them out loud._

" _Gin, I…" she breathed, "I'm p-pregnant."_

 _The man's body tensed immediately._

" _Pregnant?" Gin choked, his arms falling helplessly to his side as he stepped away from her to glance down at her still flat stomach._

 _Rangiku nodded quickly, a hand automatically coming down to caress her abdomen; her baby was only a few inches long but she swore she could feel it down there._

" _Mine?" the soul reaper asked, still looking at her stomach disbelievingly._

" _Of course yours!" Rangiku exclaimed; what kind of girl did he think she was? Was he really expecting her to have slept with someone else? Had he slept with someone else? Was this something they were doing? Rangiku couldn't help but feel hurt at the insinuation, but she tried to keep her cool; Gin had just learnt that he was going to be a father, he was in shock._

 _Gin swallowed and Rangiku realised how pale his face had gotten. He was also no longer smiling. He began to pace quickly in front of her, up and down along the bank of the stream, his face contorted in deep thought. Any hopes she had held that maybe he might not take it all that badly instantly vanished and she braced herself for the storm that was to come._

" _We always knew it was a possibility," Gin muttered under his breath so quickly it almost sounded like he was hissing, "We often forget to use…and now she's…"_

 _Suddenly the man froze mid step. He turned slowly to stare at her, his eyes open for once and as serious as she'd ever seen them._

" _We'll go to Squad Four," Gin told her, "Unohana is reasonable. She won't tell anyone if we get the abortion done early."_

" _Abortion?" Rangiku yelped, "I'm not getting an abortion!"_

" _You'll have to, love," Gin stepped towards her but Rangiku stepped back to keep the distance, "Look, Central Forty-Six will come for us if we don't and they'll kill the baby anyway, it'd be kinder to-"_

" _No, Gin!" she screamed, "I am not doing that! I am raising this baby even if I have to do it alone."_

" _Rangiku, please," the silver haired begged, "This baby will do you more harm than good. Be smart about this."_

 _The busty woman felt hot tears sting her eyes and looked away; she's been preparing for this moment for weeks now, but it hurt more than she could have ever imagined. Gin – her childhood friend, her saviour and now her long-time boyfriend – was never going to be her baby's father. Not really; he had the genes but not the desire or attitude. There had been a time when Rangiku had thought that literally nothing in this world could be more important than he was to her, that nothing could break them up, but here she was; an unborn child the size of a lemon was more important than her oldest companion._

 _Rangiku looked back into her former love's eyes and swallowed._

" _I'm keeping this baby, Gin," she announced, her voice firm and unyielding, "Nothing will change my mind. You can either join me and be a father, or walk away now and if Central Forty-Six come, I won't tell them you're the father."_

 _Gin regarded her for a long time with nothing but the sound of the stream flowing gently to break the tense silence. Rangiku continued to hold her stomach as the man shifted to glare at it._

" _I cannot support you in this, Ran," he said eventually, "You're making a mistake."_

 _Rangiku released the breath she didn't know she was holding._

 _Well, that was it. She was to be a single mother._

 _The thought was both terrifying and heartbreaking but she held her head high. She wasn't going to let Gin know she was scared; she wasn't going to let him jump in with any more of his suggestions._

 _Instead, she turned around and walked way, not even bothering to say good bye to the man she loved. Right now, she had a baby to protect and a plan to make in order to avoid Central Forty-Six._

…

The room had brightened as the sun rose but Rangiku hadn't slept that night at all for two reasons. Firstly, Toshiro was still very much injured and she was too scared to fall asleep and miss him waking back up; he might be in pain and she knew he would prefer to suffer silently than wake her up to ask for some painkillers. Secondly, she had just absorbed her old memories from the ash globe and now all she wanted to do was play those two years through her head again.

Part of her was afraid she'd lose them again.

Granted, not all them were good, just as Isshin had warned her; the fear, the loneliness, spending nine months getting fat and throwing up each morning… but none of the negative memories could ever come close to the incredible amount of good memories she now had.

She truly felt like a mother now. She remembered the pregnancy, the birth and so many of Toshiro's firsts; the first time he rolled over, crawled and walked, his first words – 'Mum', followed by 'snow', followed by 'boobs', but she didn't think she'd tell him about that third one….

The boy in question shifted on the mattress beside her and Rangiku paused her internal memory movie to adjust her hold on the small body. She didn't want Toshiro to be uncomfortable or in pain from her hold but he only seemed to snuggle closer to her body. He seemed to be slowly coming to, just as Isshin had suspected.

Pressing a light kiss to the boy's forehead, Rangiku pulled the blanket up a little higher to cover his tiny shoulders before placing her arm back over him, carefully avoiding the wound.

"Matsu…moto…"

Almost startled to hear his croaky voice after so long, Rangiku glanced down to see two tired teal eyes staring up at her.

"Hi, Sweetheart," Rangiku whispered, brushing a stray white lock from his face, "Are you in pain? Do you want some painkillers?"

"No, I'm fine," Toshiro yawned, a tiny little fist coming up to rub his sleepy eyes.

The lieutenant pursed her lips together; she didn't like when Toshiro told her he was fine because ninety percent of the time he said it, he most definitely wasn't 'fine'. He'd just been slashed across the chest, for goodness sake.

"You really scared me, Toshiro," she murmured, locking eyes with her injured son, "I was terrified I was going to lose you… we all were."

"I didn't want to upset you," the little captain said quickly, "I just… I-I couldn't let- I didn't want you to get hurt."

Toshiro was looking away from her now, and apparently was finding the stitching around the edge of the blanket to be highly interesting. Rangiku sighed; he looked like a guilty child getting told off by his mother and she didn't want this moment to be ruined by that. She'd almost lost her son after just finding out about him, she wanted to celebrate his survival and their future together as mother and son in a positive way. She wanted to hold him and share her newfound memories with him.

"I'm not angry," Rangiku told her son, her hand finding his underneath the bed covers, "I'm just glad you're okay now, and tomorrow I'll make arrangements for me to transfer to a different squad."

Toshiro opened his mouth to protest but Rangiku hushed him quickly.

"You were right, we can't work together now," she murmured, tightening her grip on his hand slightly, "But I will get to be your mother and that's better than anything."

Toshiro's eyes found hers again and teal pierced through icy blue. He was searching her very soul right now and the lieutenant hoped that he could see the sincerity of her emotions. She hoped he could see just how much she loved him.

"What about your memories?" he murmured at last, voice more stiff than usual.

"I've already seen them," Rangiku answered and the effect was instantaneous; Toshiro's whole body went rigid and he stared at her in complete shock – just as Gin had when she'd told him she was pregnant.

"But you-" Toshiro's eyes went wide and he pointed at her almost accusingly, "Y-you still want to be my m-mother?"

Rangiku could almost hear her heart shattering; she hated that her son's first assumption was that she would turn her back on him after everything they'd been through together. She knew it wasn't his fault really, since he'd been bullied for years and even Momo – who promised to love him as a sister for the rest of their lives – betrayed him for Aizen. It killed her that she wasn't there to protect her baby boy from the bullies, but she was here now. She would not let anything like that happen again; she didn't even care if she got a reputation as an overbearing helicopter mother – she'd missed decades of motherhood and she was going to make up for it all now.

"Of course I do, Sweetheart," Rangiku leaned over to kiss the boy's head again, "You're my son; I love you so much and nothing will ever change that."

"You love me?"

The words hung in the air and Rangiku realised that they'd never said that to each other before. Of course they had only just found out about their real relationship but she'd always loved him.

"Yes, I do," Rangiku responded matter-of-factly and nodded confidently, trying to appear as if she hadn't realised it that she'd unknowingly waited this long to say three simple words out loud to her own son.

After a few beats of silence, Toshiro released a shaky breath and attempted to roll onto his side to face her. The lieutenant frowned when he hissed in pain and rushed to assist him into a more comfortable position. She went to lean back again once he seemed okay but before she could, two small fists were tugging her shirt back and a head of snowy locks was burying itself in her chest. Hesitating a moment while her brain caught up, Rangiku eventually wrapped her arms gently around her child's body and held him. She wondered if he would say it back, or if it was still too soon for him? She completely understood if it was the latter; Toshiro had never been good with dealing with or expressing his emotions and the last thing she wanted to do was rush him on it.

There was no reply for a long time but after a while, the captain's head shifted slightly, one eye popping out from her large – now covered – breasts.

"I love you too," Toshiro blurted out and promptly buried his face again, but Rangiku's grin grew exponentially.

…

" _Come on, Tosh," Rangiku knelt, patting her thighs as the toddler reached a hand out to her from his position on the other side of the room, "Come to Mama."_

 _He wasn't quite nine months old yet, but Toshiro had been showing signs of walking for quite some time now. A child prodigy like his father it would seem, and although Rangiku preferred not to dwell on the long list of similarities her child already had with his father despite the fact the man had never even met his son._

" _Come to me, Toshiro," She cooed again, "Show me how you walk."_

 _Toshiro grinned and shifted onto his hands and knees before crawling quickly towards Rangiku._

" _No, I said 'walk'," she chuckled as the toddler climbed into her lap, his expression so happy and delighted to be back with her that she could never be mad at him._

 _She lifted him back out of her lap and placed his tiny feet on the ground; she continued to hold up his arms and did her best to coach him into taking some little steps. As he got the idea and slowly became more confident, Rangiku slowly loosened her hold on him. He realised what she was doing instantly and stopped to glare at her, causing the strawberry blonde to chuckle; her son was going to have a seriously scary glare when he grew up. Nevertheless, Rangiku released her hold completely and took a couple steps back._

" _Walk, Toshiro," she called as her son continued to stand still in the middle of the room._

 _Toshiro had mastered pulling himself up with the aid of furniture a few weeks ago and was now at the point that he could remain standing without holding on to anything. He was yet to stand up unassisted or take any steps without holding onto something however, but he was already ahead of most children his age, so Rangiku was not worried._

" _Mum," Toshiro called back, stubbornly refusing to move off his spot._

" _Come on, little one," Rangiku grinned and sunk into a crouch so that she was almost at the same height level as her son, "Walk to me."_

 _Her grin widened as Toshiro pouted adorably and crossed his arms over his chest. He was quite the animated little fella, his face expressive to match the enthusiasm of his hand gestures. He knew quite a few words now too, and he often babbled away to himself or to her, or sometimes to 'Snow' – his soft white dragon toy. Reminded of her son's favourite toy, Rangiku scanned the room and saw the plush toy sitting on Toshiro's play blanket. She reached for it, her son's suspicious gaze following her movements._

 _Rangiku held it out to him._

" _Do you want Snow?" she asked the boy, "Snow wants to see you walk too."_

" _Snow…" the boy reached out for the toy but his feet did not move._

" _Snow misses you, Toshiro," Rangiku giggled, waving the toy a little; her son's helpless expression was too adorable._

 _The strawberry blonde moved a little closer, leaving about one metre of space between her and the boy; she hoped the smaller gap would be more of an incentive for him to move. Toshiro looked at his feet and then back up her. She nodded encouragingly at him and held her arms out for him to come to her._

 _Slowly, the toddler lifted a foot of the ground and stepped forward. He was very wobbly but he didn't fall over and Rangiku smiled like crazy as he moved his other foot. He made the third step fine too but fell on the fourth. Luckily he'd walked close enough to her that she caught him and pulled him into her arms. Rangiku sat back on the ground and put the little boy in her lap as he cuddled his small dragon toy._

" _You did it, Toshiro!" Rangiku blew a raspberry on cheek, "I'm so proud of you, little one."_

 _Toshiro only giggled before nuzzling his face into her chest, Snow the dragon tucked safely under his arm. Rangiku could tell he was getting tired; he'd just been fed and it was coming up to his regular nap time. He often fell asleep faster when she cradled him than if she just popped him into his crib, so she reached for the nearest blanket and draped it over the small boy and began to rock him gently to sleep._

…

Toshiro kept his head buried in his mother's chest; he knew it was an embarrassing position to put his head but he wasn't sure where else he could hide his face, especially since they provided such exceptional coverage. She hadn't said anything since he had admitted his feelings just now, but she tightened her hold on him ever so slightly. He'd been grateful that she hadn't squeezed him too hard like she normally would have because if he was being honest, his chest was still stinging with the pain of the arrancar's blade slashing open his skin. Not that he was concentrating on the pain since he was much more focused on the woman lying beside him who had just told him that she loved him.

He wanted to ask what she saw in her memories so badly, but he didn't want to hear about Gin Ichimaru and how he hurt her, nor did he really want to hear any nappy changing or breast-feeding stories from her. Somehow she knew he was thinking about it anyway, or maybe she just thinking the same thing?

"You were born almost seven weeks early," she murmured, "Gods, you were tiny."

"I still am…" Toshiro muttered and he heard Rangiku chuckle above him; the idea of making her smile and laugh made his heart swell and he vowed to try and do it more often.

"You always wanted to be picked up and cuddled," Rangiku continued softly, her hand now stroking his hair slowly, "You loved playing with my hair when I sang to you."

"You'd sing to me?" Toshiro asked, tilting his head back to look up at his lieutenant and mother.

She smiled at him and cupped his cheek, her thumb rubbing his cheek bone lightly.

"Every night before bed," she grinned, "It was the only thing that would calm you down; all you wanted to do was play, even in the middle of the night. You used to wake me up by calling out 'Mama play'."

Toshiro felt the corners of his mouth twitch at that memory; not much had changed in that respect except now he woke her up in the middle of the day shouting 'Matsumoto, Paperwork!'

"We had so much fun together when you were a toddler," Rangiku smiled fondly, "You had such a flamboyant personality."

"Flamboyant?" Toshiro frowned; he was the furthest thing from 'flamboyant'.

"You were playful," his mother giggled, "Like you normally are when it starts to snow and we play in the garden in front of our quarters."

That was a memory Toshiro did have; every winter, after the first heavy snow, he would go out into the garden in front of his and Rangiku's quarters and play – well the closest thing a captain of the Gotei Thirteen could do to 'playing' – his lieutenant would always come join him. He knew it was often an attempt to get out of doing her work but he needed someone to help him build a snowman and she didn't seem to mind the cold too much.

"Matsumoto-"

"Mum," Rangiku corrected, tapping his nose gently, "You said it when the arrancar attacked me, you can say it now."

"M-mum?" Toshiro blushed furiously but nevertheless gave in to her request, "I was wondering if you might know… now that you have your memories back… why you called me 'Toshiro' and not 'Takeo' like you said you wanted to?"

Toshiro watched as Rangiku smiled, her eyes appearing to glaze over as she recalled the reason.

"I named you after the doctor who helped me bring you into this world," she explained, her smile growing, "I moved around a lot because I thought it would keep Central Forty-Six off my trail and when I went into early labour, I was in a small village and nobody wanted to help me because they were afraid of my spiritual pressure which was getting more and more tense as I began to panic…"

Toshiro grimaced; he knew all too well how the regular villagers treat people with high spiritual pressures. It was ridiculous that fear should stop them helping a pregnant woman in labour or an innocent child just trying to buy snacks for his grandmother.

"I was in tears and starting to hyperventilate when a woman Mika found me and helped me into her home," Rangiku continued, "Her husband, _Toshiro,_ was a doctor and he and his wife delivered you. Luckily your lungs had formed properly so even though you were prematurely born, you were able to breathe fine. I was so grateful for their help that I decided to name you Toshiro if you were a boy or Mika if you were a girl…"

"Maybe we should track them down when we go back to the Soul Society?" Toshiro suggested, "To say 'thank you'."

"Yes, I'd like that," Rangiku murmured thoughtfully, "They gave me most of your baby stuff as their kids had grown out of it by then…"

Several more moments passed in silence as Rangiku continued to hold him and Toshiro melted against her comfortably. This is what he'd always wanted… to be held by his mother. It was not a feeling to be understated; it was the most incredible, warm, comforting experience of his life, and hearing about her memories had actually made him really happy. He was glad she was focused on the happy memories of him and not whatever memories she had of his biological father. It also made him wonder what he might see in his own memories; obviously he wouldn't have too many given his age at the time they were taken but perhaps it was worth seeing what was there?

"Matsu- Mum, do you still have my memory globe?" he asked, trying to sound casual.

Rangiku drew one of her arms back from around him and leaned away; for once the cold that greeted him was not welcomed – he'd grown to like the warmth as long as it came from her. He heard her shuffling through the nightstand drawer before she returned a moment later, the small snowy globe held protectively in her palm.

"Are you sure?"

No, but Toshiro felt like he'd regret it if he didn't.

"Yes."

He took the globe into his hand and stared at it; dark images flashed by quickly, disappearing as quickly as they had appeared. He felt his hand trembling a little as he held the memory orb up to his temple. Rangiku was watching him with motherly concern and with one last shaking breath, he pushed the globe against his temple.

Instantly, flashes of vivid colour splashed his vision, and voices… he heard Rangiku's.

" _Sleep now, Toshiro," she murmured, her hand running though his hair._

 _Toshiro was lying her lap, looking up at her. Her hair was brightened by the nearby lamp and it looked so soft and silky. He wanted to touch it._

 _His mother started to sing to him, her voice calming and suddenly Toshiro felt his mouth opening to yawn. He reached out to feel her hair; it was even softer than it looked and he liked the way it threaded through his fingers._

 _._

Suddenly the scene shifted…

 _._

 _He was standing on squishy, cold, white stuff and his mother was standing on the other side of the garden._

" _Look at all this snow, little one," she picked up some of the white stuff and let it fall through her fingers._

" _Snow?" Toshiro asked, holding out his dragon._

" _Yes, Snow the dragon," his mother nodded, before point to the ground, "and snow on the ground."_

 _Toshiro frowned at the white covered ground. This was snow too? Crouching down, he put a hand out to touch it. His mother had put funny socks – what did she call them again? – on his hands before she'd brought him out here and with them on he couldn't feel the snow. Slipping one off, he reached down again to touch the white ground 'snow'._

" _Cold, Mum," Toshiro concluded, looking up at his smiling mother._

" _Yes it is, now put your glove back on."_

" _No glove."_

 _._

The imaged blurred away and was replaced by a new memory once again…

.

" _Bath time, little one,"_

 _Toshiro didn't have time to escape before he was being hoisted into the air and placed down into the bathtub of warm water. He didn't like warm water._

 _He tried to squirm free but she held him in place and began running a wet cloth over his body._

" _Stop fussing, Toshiro," his mother frowned at him, "I have to get you cleaned up."_

" _Why?" he asked._

" _Because you'll get smelly otherwise!"_

 _He pouted; he really did hate warm water._

 _._

Toshiro grinned; he still hated warm water. He didn't have time to dwell on it as the scene shifted once more.

.

" _Mum!"_

 _No reply._

" _Mama!"_

 _Still no reply._

" _MAMA!"_

 _Light flooded the room and Toshiro stood in his crib, holding on to the bars while his mother looked at him seeming rather unimpressed._

" _Toshiro, it's the middle of the night," she yawned, "It's sleep time for us both now."_

" _Mama play!" Toshiro grinned and held out his dragon to her._

 _She looked at him for a long time and Toshiro wasn't sure if that meant 'yes' or 'no' so he waved Snow again. Eventually his mother sighed and came to the side of the crib. He held his arms up for her to pick him up and she did, pulling him out of his bed and placing him on her hip._

" _It's too late to play now," she murmured as she walked back to her own bed with him, "But you can sleep in my bed tonight."_

" _Snow come?"_

" _Yes, Snow can come."_

 _._

Blurring again, the images changed one more time…

.

 _It was past bed time now, but his mother was letting him play tonight. He sat in her lap and played with her brightly coloured hair while she hummed._

" _Mum," Toshiro smiled, "Mama."_

" _Shush, little one, go to sleep now."_

 _His mother's words weren't all that convincing as she smiled down on him too and he was about to reach for her hair again when his mother suddenly fell asleep. She flopped back suddenly and Toshiro slipped onto the floor beside her. He stood up; maybe she was going to play with him after all?_

 _He crouched next to her head and prodded her face gently, "Mum?"_

" _Hello, little one."_

 _Toshiro turned quickly to see a strange woman standing inside his home. Her hair was purple and her eye's had funny slits in them, like his cat toy, 'Kitty'. He didn't like strangers. Tugging on his mother's shirt, he watched fearfully as the strange woman stepped towards him, holding out her hand._

" _Mama," Toshiro called again, but now he knew his mother wasn't playing a game._

Toshiro inhaled sharply and forced the memories to stop. He must of jerked his body because the pain in his chest was searing intensely again but it was nothing compared to the stabbing pain in his heart.

"Are you okay?" Rangiku asked, voice raised in alarm, "What did you see?"

Toshiro shook his head and clenched his eyes; the memories had been so vivid, so real. He remembered what it was like to be a child without burdens, to be loved properly by a parent, he remembered only small moments but they were enough to rip open his heart and turn his mind completely blank.

Rangiku's arms were around him again and he sunk into her body; she was his mother and seeing the memories made it all seem real now. He remembered being held, he remembered being fed and sung too, he remembered hating bath time and bed time, but he loved play time. He had his own blanket and his own toys. Snow the dragon… he wondered if it still existed and where it might be now?

The first few memories had been overwhelming on their own, but to see the last one too… He had known it was a possibility but he was hoping to not see that. Yoruichi closing in on them, his mother unresponsive… it was the moment that destroyed their lives.

"I saw me," Toshiro croaked as he fisted his mother's shirt; he could feel tears coming and it scared him – he had not cried properly in a very long time, "I saw you… and I saw Yoruichi Shihoin."

He heard Rangiku gasp above him before his first sob left him. He tried to hold it back but the emotions were overpowering and the love of his mother with her arms wrapped around him encouraged his icy gates to open. He let them. Tears flooded out of him and he went limp in her hold.

She held him as everything came out; the shock he felt at the meeting, the fear he might be executed, the hurt that his father hated him, the joy of seeing Isshin and Ichigo again, the confronting feeling of knowing he was going to have to send his best lieutenant away, the horror that his mother was about to be killed by the arrancar, the pain of being slashed across the chest, the happiness of Rangiku saying 'I love you' and the overwhelming flood of memories impaling his brain.

Rangiku started to sing for him, and automatically his hand found his way into her hair, just like old times.

…

" _Can you say 'Mum'?"_

" _Mamamamama,"_

" _Very good, Toshiro!" Rangiku grinned down at the little boy in her lap, "Now try just saying 'Mum."_

 _Her son was quite the talker, but he was yet to master any real words. He mostly just put different syllables together and babbled away. He was not quite half a year old yet and Rangiku was surprised to hear so many sounds from the baby, but according to her parenting book, many babies start saying 'mama' or 'dada' from six months onwards. Right now, she was known as 'Mamamamama' and that was very close. She and Toshiro often had quite animated conversations, even though his side was mostly nonsense, but she always replied to him anyway. After being alone with a baby for so long, she was looking forward to having someone to talk to her properly, even if it was only about toy dragons and appropriate bed times._

" _You can do it, little one," Rangiku nodded encouragingly, "Say 'Mum'."_

" _Mum!"_

 _Rangiku was so shocked, she almost dropped him. She'd been doing this for days with him and wasn't expecting a correct response so suddenly. She thought perhaps she'd get him down to 'Mamama' first._

" _Mum!" he said again and Rangiku's grin blew up._

" _That's right, Toshiro," she gushed, bouncing the boy in her lap in celebration, "I'm 'Mum'!"_

" _Mum!" he giggled again and Rangiku chuckled at his excitement._

 _Her son's first word had been 'Mum' and she couldn't have been prouder. It was a major milestone in his life and it had been her name. She pulled the boy up to her chest and laid back on the bed, her son lying on his stomach over her chest. She smiled as he touched her face and her hair and resumed his normal babbling; he was the cutest being alive and her little prodigy – picking up new skills earlier than the book was telling her._

" _I love you, Toshiro," she grinned, booping his nose lightly._

 _The boy giggled, and did it back to her, although his movements were much slower than hers._

" _Mum!"_

…

 **Little Tosh :')**

 **Pretty please review for me, there is only one full chapter after this and then a small epilogue.**


	6. Going Home

Chapter Six: Going Home

 _Rangiku sighed; getting her seven month old son to start eating solid food was more of a struggle than she had thought it would be; well, the term 'solid' was being used rather loosely, she decided, lifting the spoon out of the bowl and watching the pureed peas drip quickly over the edge. The book had recommended pureed peas because they were smooth, lacked lumps and were high in iron, but the strawberry blonde thought they looked disgusting – no wonder her little one wasn't interested. Still, he was a prodigy and she had expected him to pick it up as quickly as he did talking._

 _Toshiro had seemed very interested in trying solid foods having spent the last few days constantly reaching for Rangiku's own meals, but as she raised the spoon to her son's mouth he clamped his mouth shut and turned his head away. Perhaps she was pushing him a little too soon? The parenting book said some babies can take a little longer to adapt to solids and there was nothing wrong with that._

" _Yummy peas, Toshiro," Rangiku smiled brightly, "Mummy likes them."_

 _She put a spoonful in her mouth and tried not to cringe at the horrible texture and plain taste; baby food was just not for adults._

" _So good," she lied after swallowing it down, "Toshiro's turn now."_

 _She scooped up another portion with the teaspoon and held it out to the white haired boy sitting in the high chair opposite her. Toshiro looked at it with distaste and confusion but didn't turn his head away. Rangiku edged the spoon closer until it was right at his lips and he was almost going cross-eyed to see it._

" _Just one taste?" Rangiku murmured, "For Mum?"_

 _She moved it forward a little more but the moment it touched her son's lips, he turned his head sharply away. The sudden movement startled Rangiku, causing her hand to jerk and the spoonful of pureed peas to splatter on Toshiro's pale cheek. The baby prodigy turned back to glare profusely at her and the blonde mother had to giggle._

" _Mum!" he cried, his voice and expression exasperated._

" _I'm so sorry, Sweetheart," she chuckled, placing the spoon back in the bowl before reaching forward to wipe the green gloop off her baby's face with her thumb._

 _As she pulled back her hand, the boy grabbed her wrist with his two hands. Rangiku raised a questioning eyebrow but remained patiently silent as she watched her son pull her hand back to him. He studied the pea puree on her thumb closely for several seconds before slowly leaning forward and poking out his tongue. Rangiku grinned as the boy lapped it off before making a funny face, his mouth moving awkwardly as he tried to understand the new texture in his mouth._

 _Interested to see if he'd taste it off her hand again, Rangiku dipped her finger in the bowl of puree and held it out to her son. She almost cheered as he leant forward to lick it off her finger. She repeated it again and found the same results but when she tried offering it to Toshiro on the spoon again, he frowned and shook his head._

" _You don't like the spoon, little one?" Rangiku tilted her head._

" _No spoon," Toshiro confirmed._

 _The strawberry blonde smiled; her son's vocabulary was phenomenal for his age._

 _She placed the bowl onto the high chair tray and sat back to observe whether or not her son might use his own hands to eat the peas. She prayed that he did not pick up the bowl and throw it onto ground; it was a plastic bowl but the mess of the pea puree would still be enormous._

 _Toshiro hesitantly lowered his finger into the bowl but quickly withdrew after touching the surface of the puree._

" _Yuck," he said, causing Rangiku to burst out laughing._

 _Toshiro hated both spoons and getting his hands dirty, apparently. Her baby pushed the bowl away from him._

" _No more?" Rangiku grinned, "Are you still hungry?"_

 _He looked at as seriously as a seven month old could look at somebody._

" _Boobs," Toshiro demanded, pointing at her chest and Rangiku sighed; that was a habit she was going to have to get him out of._

…

"What are grinning about?"

Her son's voice broke her out of her day dream and the lieutenant let the Kurosaki spare bedroom come back into her focus; she was standing by the bed holding a pair of Toshiro's socks. It was Sunday afternoon and their week in the World of the Living was rapidly coming to its' end. Taking on the mother role put her in charge of packing and even though it was a small and insignificant task on the grand scale of motherhood, she was determined to do a good job. She was a little out of practise but she'd promised herself to be the mother Toshiro deserved.

"Do you remember the first time I tried to feed you solids?" Rangiku asked, rolling up the socks and placing them in their combined pack, "I gave you pureed peas."

"You got it on my face," Toshiro said dryly, entering the bedroom, "But that's all I remember."

"Well, you moved," the lieutenant shrugged casually, although her smile was giving away how funny she found the memory.

She turned to pick up the next item of clothing. It was a shirt that had the number fifteen printed on it; it was one of the many old shirts Ichigo had given Toshiro to wear during his stay. The orange haired teen had told her to keep them for the young captain after seeing how much he seemed to love them, despite the obvious oversizing.

Due to Toshiro's injured state, the boy genius had been confined to bed rest for the remainder of their stay – much to his distaste. Rangiku had loved it though; she'd spent almost every available minute cuddled up beside him while they watched a movie or even when he was reading. However, there were a number of arrangements she still had to organise regarding her division transfer and not wanting to stress her son out while he was so weak, she made most of the phone calls privately. She also had to return to the Soul Society for a few hours to have a meeting with the Head Captain which tore her away from Toshiro, as well as in the evenings when Yuzu gave her cooking lessons – they had kitchens and chefs at the Squad Ten barracks but Rangiku wanted to feed her son herself.

During these times that she was away, Ichigo – having been allowed to take Thursday and Friday off school – would stay with him and keep him company, as would Isshin in the evenings after the clinic had closed for the day. It seemed that Toshiro had now completely forgiven their former captain for his abandonment and one evening before dinner, Rangiku found her son curled up beside Isshin as the doctor read to him. Ichigo's relationship with the boy genius had become – if at all possible – even more brotherly and now they had a number of secret jokes that only they understood while she and Isshin just shrugged at each other.

Toshiro's smile was a rare and beautiful sight and Rangiku had been blessed to see it several times since he'd finally opened up his emotional dam to her the other night.

"Do you know where my book is?" Toshiro asked, dropping down to look underneath the bed, "I want to finish it before we leave…"

"Ichigo said you could borrow it, so I have already packed it," Rangiku told him, "As well as the rest of the books in the series."

Rangiku had sighed seeing Ichigo approach with the four books, knowing it was going to weigh down their pack, but Ichigo had laughed and told her to be grateful that her boy was a quick reader and had managed to finish the first five books in the series already. To be fair, she shouldn't have been surprised; confined to bed with no paperwork, Toshiro could have demolished all nine books if she hadn't demanded he watch all those movies with her and teach her how to play Chess.

A knock at the door caught both of their attention and the Squad Ten leaders turned to see Ichigo looking rather confused in the door way.

"Uh guys?" the eighteen year old murmured, "Half of the Gotei Thirteen is here to see you?"

Toshiro mirrored Ichigo's confused frown but Rangiku clapped excitedly and jumped towards the door.

"They came," she squealed, "Come on, Toshiro; it's time to meet your new lieutenant!"

She slipped past Ichigo, ignoring her son's protest, and hurried down the stairs to meet her friends, knowing the two boys wouldn't be far behind her as they wanted to find out what was happening. The strawberry blonde entered the living room to see her close friends from Squad Eight and Squad Thirteen as well as Renji.

"Wow, I wasn't expecting all of you," Rangiku beamed at them, bowing respectfully to the captains before hugging Nanao and Rukia, "Thank you so much for coming."

"Isshin Shiba invited us," Kyoraku smirked, "And we were all really missing our favourite little captain."

Rangiku turned to see Isshin grinning in the doorway, his arms draped loosely over Ichigo and Toshiro who had caught up and were standing either side of him. He shrugged casually.

"It's Kurosaki now, Shunsui, and I thought we could have one of our old family dinners," Isshin smirked playfully, "Especially now we've got all these new additions."

The black haired doctor winked at Rukia and Renji, while tussling Ichigo's orange spikes. Rangiku smiled; she'd missed the old family dinners they used to have – every Sunday night, Kyoraku and Nanao would come over to the Squad Ten barracks along with Ukitake and Kaien Shiba. It was always nice night and even Toshiro would take a break from the paperwork to join his captain and lieutenant at the dinner table, but unfortunately the dinners had stopped after they'd lost both Shibas – it had become too painful for everyone. While they had lost Kaien forever, they had gotten back Isshin, along with three new Shiba/Kurosaki children. Rukia had been promoted to lieutenant, finally becoming Ukitake's new right hand woman and Renji had just seemed to tag along given his closeness to both Rukia and Ichigo. Rangiku smiled at Toshiro; it had been just the two of them for so long but now it didn't have to be – they had a big family, even if they were spread over two worlds.

She gestured to Toshiro to come to her and the boy slipped away from Isshin and right into her awaiting arms, apparently not minding the affection in front of their guests.

"So I think we've come up with an arrangement that will suit us all," Rangiku informed him, looking around the room as the people not involved dispersed into the dining room to give them some space to discuss the developments.

Rangiku turned to face Ukitake who smiled adoringly at Toshiro and to Rukia who stood a little straighter as teal eyes fell on her.

"Rukia and I will be swapping divisions," Rangiku told her son, "She will be your new lieutenant."

Toshiro looked the raven haired girl up and down.

"I thought you'd prefer to stay at Squad Thirteen," he murmured, eyebrow raised.

"As much I love Squad Thirteen and Captain Ukitake, I think you are the best captain to help me achieve my potential," Rukia answered.

"Why?"

"You're an ice wielder and so am I," the young Kuchiki said, "I can learn more from you than any other soul reaper."

"Rukia has started bankai training," Ukitake added, "You'll be much more helpful than I in this area, and I also think she would benefit from seeing how you run a division, since I am often sick and unable to mentor Rukia like you could."

Having Rukia learning bankai was one of the biggest reasons Rangiku had been pushing this deal so much, other than the fact she was one of the few lieutenants Toshiro actually liked. The strawberry blonde felt that her boy would be safer with a powerful lieutenant and Rukia was also an ice type, which would match Toshiro in battle. Furthermore, Rukia was a kind girl and willing to work hard to please her captain; she'd do a good job on the paperwork and wouldn't burden Toshiro in any way.

"What do you think, Toshiro?" Rangiku asked, crouching down to her son's height; she wanted to be level with him and get an honest answer.

"I… I think it's the best solution," Toshiro nodded, captain-mode activated, and turned to Rukia, "I will be glad to have you as my second in command, Lieutenant Kuchiki."

Rukia beamed and bowed low while Ukitake clapped excitedly. Rangiku however, could see some hesitation in her child's eyes.

"What's wrong?" she whispered, "Do you not want this?"

"No, I… I do… I think it's a good idea. I just…" Toshiro looked at his feet as his voice trailed off, and Rangiku leaned in close to hear him, "I-I don't want you to move away."

Rangiku smiled, "I won't be."

In each division barracks, the captain and lieutenant had the biggest quarters and were often neighbours. In Squad Ten, Toshiro and Rangiku's quarters were in a separate building at the back division; they shared a building, a garden and a wrap-around porch deck, but the rooms themselves were separated by a wall, effectively making them like two different apartments in a shared building. They lived together now as Captain and Lieutenant of Squad Ten but Toshiro's fear was that Rangiku would have to move to Squad Thirteen so Rukia could move into the lieutenant's quarters next door.

"Rukia lives at Kuchiki Manor with her brother – she always has," Rangiku explained further, "So I will be staying with you and both of us will be travelling to work each day."

"I'll actually be closer to work now," Rukia supplied happily.

"And I am happy to walk to Squad Thirteen each day," Rangiku added encouragingly, "I was also thinking we could knock out that wall between our rooms and live together like a real family…"

Toshiro looked at her with wide eyes before hugging her again, his arms winding around her neck and his face pressing into her shoulder. Rangiku smiled and hugged him back, still mindful of his wound, and rubbed his back softly.

"That sounds good," he murmured in her shoulder.

…

Dinner had been amazing; Yuzu had cooked up an entire feast to feed all the guests, and the dinner table banter had wonderful. Rangiku had been trading information with Rukia about their upcoming division swap, and when she had glanced up to observe the rest of the 'family', she had grinned at the sight:

Isshin and Shunsui were riling each other up like old times while Nanao chastised them both, Karin and Yuzu were twin-teaming against Renji in a battle of wits which the red head was categorically losing, and Ichigo and Toshiro were throwing food into each other's mouths from across the table while Ukitake looked on with fondness for their new family.

At one point, Toshiro asked for an update on the Central Forty-Six trial and both he and Rangiku were satisfied to hear the legislative authority had been disbanded permanently. However, as there was a still a requirement for a body separate to the captains of the Gotei Thirteen to make impartial decisions in regards to Soul Society laws, the Head Captain had decided to form a new group, to be known as 'United Seireitei Cooperation'. It was to be made up of two representatives from each squad in a mixture of gender, rank and noble status, where each representative would sit for a minimum of five years, but no more than ten years. Each meeting of the United Seireitei Cooperation would be overseen by a captain, who – although had no power over decisions – would ensure no bias or corruption, and the captains would rotate this duty amongst themselves. Furthermore, all previous laws and punishments created by Central Forty-Six were to be reviewed and removed if necessary; the Head Captain had already abolished the 'Irreversible Punishment' penalty and was in the process of tracking down the affected families to offer compensation.

It didn't change the past, but at least no future families would be torn apart.

It was the best possible solution that Rangiku could have hoped for, and she was very thankful that her friends had fought so hard for hers and Toshiro's rights.

"Kurotsuchi started a petition calling for Toshiro's execution," Kyoraku whispered to Rangiku when everyone else became distracted by Yuzu's triple chocolate cake for dessert, "Yamamoto threw him in the Maggot's Nest but he gets released tomorrow."

"Did he get any signatures?" Rangiku ask quietly, glancing over at her son who was smiling with chocolate on his face, and deciding he was better off not knowing this.

"A few from his own division," Kyoraku shrugged, "But we suspect they were forced into it."

Rangiku sighed; she really didn't want that freaky man anywhere near her son when they returned. It was something she was prepared to monitor and she'd probably have to include Rukia now that she'd be spending the most amount of time with the boy genius during the working day.

Dessert wrapped up quickly as everyone practically inhaled their chocolate cake and Rangiku helped Isshin clear the dishes, stopping briefly to wipe the mess off Toshiro's face. The big breasted blonde was about to sit back down when a knock at the door echoed through the room.

"Who could be here this late?" Karin asked, voicing Rangiku's own thoughts.

"Karin, go answer the door for Daddy," Isshin said, entering the dining room from the kitchen after clearing the last round of dishes.

"But Ichigo is closer-"

"But I've asked you," Isshin said sternly, "Do as you're told and tell Yoruichi to wait by the door, I'll be there soon."

Everyone at the table went silent as Karin slipped out into the main hall way to answer the door.

"Yoruichi?!" Rangiku repeated, sure she must have misheard.

She looked at Isshin questioningly and found him picking at the edge of his placemat, his eyes downcast and his expression guilty. Rangiku's mind went blank; _he invited Yoruichi over?!_ The woman that stole her child and her memory, not to mention her ability to have more children?

Sensing the tension, Ichigo quickly herded everyone into the living room while Yuzu ran into the kitchen to get tea for their guests. Toshiro remained seated; his face was impassive as he took a sip of his water, acting as though he hadn't even noticed everyone else leave the room.

"Isshin?" Rangiku pressed, her tone tense.

"Don't be mad, Ran," the doctor cringed at the rise in her voice, "But Yoruichi has been desperate to talk to you-"

"So you just invited her over for dinner?" the blonde said incredulously, "Despite the fact she tried to kill my son?"

"Rangiku, if she'd tried to kill your son, I wouldn't be letting her anywhere near either of you," Isshin argued, "I know you're angry but it's time to move on. Forgive and let live. Forgive her for you."

"I am never forgiving her," Rangiku spat, glaring at the man she thought cared about her.

She couldn't believe this, she couldn't believe Isshin had invited that lying woman over, expecting her to forgive everything she'd done to them. Because of Yoruichi, Toshiro had been raised as an orphan; _sure, he had Granny_ , and as much as she cared for him, she simply couldn't have provided what a real parent could have. The strawberry blonde glanced over at the boy to see his eyes shifting between her and Isshin uncomfortably, looking timid and a little afraid. She frowned; she had promised to keep Toshiro safe and happy, and obviously having that woman in the house was upsetting him.

"Tell her to go," Rangiku clenched her jaw as she turned back to Isshin, "I don't want her near us."

Isshin sighed and sat back down in his chair. He was a patient man; he'd raised three children on his own and that's exactly how he was treating her – like she was his disobedient child.

"I'm not telling her anything, Ran," the black haired man murmured, "If you want her to go, you go tell her yourself."

Rangiku could tell she wasn't going to win this battle; if Isshin wanted her to talk to Yoruichi, then fine, she would do that, but she expected he wouldn't be seeing the results he desired.

"Fine," she said, standing straighter and fix her clothes, "But I am not forgiving that lying, stealing, _backstabber."_

She could have used another word starting with 'B' but she didn't want to use it in front of her – physically – ten year old.

Turning sharply on her heel, Rangiku stormed from the room and into the main hallway. Her ex-friend, Yoruichi Shihoin, stood alone by the door. She was not up to her usual standards in terms of appearance; her long purple hair was messy and hanging in a very loose ponytail, her clothes were crinkled and starting to look baggy from apparent weight loss and she was not wearing any make up like she usually did.

But it was her face that was the most different. Rangiku almost gasped, and if they'd still been friends she would have ran to her side and wrapped in a giant breasty hug. The once noble woman looked like she hadn't slept since the meeting and her normally tan face was almost as pale as Toshiro's. Part of Rangiku wanted to go comfort her friend, but then the bigger part of her reminded her why she wasn't her friend anymore.

Yoruichi had stolen her memories, sterilized her and taken her toddler away. She'd lied about it for almost a century, despite all the opportunities she had to come clean.

She was not Rangiku's friend and she was not going to be forgiven.

"Mum, wait!" Toshiro called after her and Rangiku turned to see the young prodigy coming towards her quickly.

"What's wrong?" she said worriedly, performing a quick scan over his body to see if his wound was bleeding or if he was upset.

"Nothing's wrong," the white haired boy said quickly as he reached her, "I just wanted to let you know that I've forgiven Yoruichi."

Rangiku's eyes bulged in shock; he'd forgiven her? When? How?

She watched, silenced by the utter blow of the surprise she felt at his announcement, as he turned to face the aforementioned woman standing by the front door, her expression on par with Rangiku's own.

"I forgive you," Toshiro told her, "You were only doing your job."

 _But she lied,_ Rangiku thought, _for years and years._ She could have told them at any time but she didn't and she even had the nerve to become Rangiku's friend while sitting on her throne of lies.

"Thank you," Yoruichi said, her voice cracking as she raised her hand to wipe away a tear, "I don't deserve it, but thank you."

Well at least they agreed on one thing; _she didn't deserve it._

A tugging on her sleeve forced Rangiku to look down at Toshiro who was trying to pull her down to his height. The big busted blonde crouched down and was surprised when the boy took her hands in his own and leant forward to whisper in her ear.

"You don't have to forgive her," Toshiro told her quietly, "But don't think you can't if you want to."

Rangiku frowned; she wasn't sure what he meant but she had no intention of forgiving the former Stealth Force Commander that destroyed their lives.

"You deserve your anger so if you're not going to forgive her, do it for yourself," her son continued, "But don't do it for me. I'm okay, Mum, I have you back now and I know we'll be okay."

"You were raised as an orphan because of her," Rangiku frowned, "How can you forgive that?"

"I don't want to be angry anymore," Toshiro admitted, "The last few days have been the happiest of my life and I want to stay that way."

The new Squad Thirteen lieutenant bit her lip; she wanted that too.

"All I am saying is that when you're deciding whether or not to forgive Yoruichi, don't use me as a reason not to," Toshiro concluded, "Either way, I want you to do it for yourself. You have a right to hold onto your anger, but you also deserve to move on and be happy."

 _Intelligent, logical_ … those things he got from his father, but _his heart_ … that's what he got from her. Rangiku felt her breath leave her shakily as Toshiro's words sunk in. The young prodigy's lips pressed against her cheek and Rangiku felt her heart ache with overwhelming feelings. Toshiro withdrew from her and turned away as he swiftly returned to the dining room. Standing back up, Rangiku felt her knees weaken. Toshiro had let go of the pain in favour of moving forward in his life, but he wanted Rangiku to make the decision that was right for her. Isshin had told her 'forgive her for you' but Toshiro had said 'you have a right to hold on to your anger' – _don't forgive her for yourself_. He didn't mind which way she went with it in the end, but he had wanted it to be about what she wanted for herself, taking the burden of his feelings off her shoulders.

Rangiku turned to Yoruichi, her mouth slightly parted as she tried to comprehend how her son's words might have affected her decision. The purple haired woman stood patiently, her feline-style eyes wet with remorse. One minute ago Rangiku had been so sure she was going to turn down any forgiveness and formally tell the former Squad Two captain that she never wanted to see her again… and to stay away from her son, but now she saw the empty shell of a woman racked with guilt, of a woman who was falling apart as her past caught up with her, and a woman who was once one Rangiku's closest friends.

"I forgive you."

The words left her mouth before she even registered her decision.

"I forgive you," Rangiku repeated and a sob left her throat before she even realised she was crying.

Yoruichi sniffled and wiped her nose with her sleeve as the tears poured out of her eyes too. Rangiku leaned back against the wall before sinking to the ground, the wooden floorboards cold beneath her.

Almost a century's worth of pain for a son she never knew she had left her. The fury she held at Central Forty-Six and at Yoruichi sat in the air above her like a dark storm cloud but it was dispersing; the storm was over. The lieutenant realised how angry she'd been at Yoruichi, and how much of it had been wrongly directed. Central Forty-Six did this. Gin Ichimaru did this. Hell, even Rangiku had done it; she'd selfishly brought a child into this world despite all the warnings. Yoruichi had simply done her job. Yes, she'd lied, and that was going to take a while to get over, but Rangiku was done holding onto the pain. Like Toshiro said, she deserved her anger but she didn't deserve the pain.

It was time to let go, it was time to move on, for her son and for herself.

"I forgive you," Rangiku cried again; the more she said it, the more she cried and the better she felt.

"Rangiku, I-I… I don't know what t-to say," Yoruichi sobbed, still frozen by the door, "I d-didn't deserve this."

"You didn't d-deserve to be attacked in the m-meeting hall either," Rangiku mumbled, her mouth actually twitching upwards a little – the whole moment seemed so surreal now, so dramatic… like a she was watching one of Yuzu's soap operas and not own life.

The two women stayed in their respective positions for several minutes. The only sounds became the odd hiccups and sniffles as the sobs receded and the tears stopped racing down their cheeks. At one point Isshin had come to check that they hadn't accidently killed each other and had looked completely dumbfounded when he found them, Rangiku sitting on the ground and Yoruichi plastered against the door, both crying messes. The busty blonde had simply said 'I forgave her' between sobs and the wise doctor nodded understandingly before retreating back to the dining room.

"I'm going to need a lot of time," Rangiku sighed eventually, breaking the post-breakdown silence, "And I'm not sure we'll ever be friends like we used to be…"

"I know," Yoruichi murmured, "You need space and time to be with your son… but if you do ever need a friend, I'll always be around if you want me."

Rangiku nodded, "I know."

…

Toshiro sat on the edge of the couch, nervously waiting for his mother to return from her talk with Yoruichi. She'd been gone for some time, and the other soul reapers had all returned to the Seireitei as it was getting rather late. The prodigy and Rangiku were leaving in the morning so there was no rush for her to return but Toshiro was getting anxious. It was much harder for Rangiku to deal with the Yoruichi side of the issue because of their long standing friendship, however Toshiro had barely known her and didn't really see her actions as a betrayal, so it was much easier for him to forgive her. Isshin had checked on the two women a while ago and reported back that Rangiku had forgiven the former Stealth Force Commander and they were 'sorting things out', but even that had been close to an hour ago.

It was getting late, and even Karin was starting to look tired from her place on the floor where she was playing a video game with Ichigo. Yuzu was flipping through a cooking magazine beside Toshiro.

"Alright, it's way passed your bedtimes now," Isshin grunted, pushing himself out of the arm chair, "Off to bed, the lot of you."

"Yeah, off to bed," Ichigo teased, poking Karin in the side for which he was punched hard in the arm.

"You too, Ichigo," Isshin smirked, "You're back at school tomorrow."

The orange haired teen groaned before dragging himself to his feet, Karin following much slower. Yuzu got up without complaint and hugged her father, siblings and even Toshiro before skipping off towards the stairs and disappearing up to the bedrooms. Karin and Ichigo refused to hug each other but his father gave them no choice, grabbing them both by their collars and forcing them into a three-way family hug that had Toshiro suppressing a small smirk. Karin was particularly unaffectionate and Ichigo was grumpy to be told to go to bed since he was usually in his room doing homework and trusted to put himself to bed at a reasonable hour.

"Now hug your brother and go up to bed," Isshin turned them towards Toshiro's direction and let them go.

Not even phased by the 'brother' comment, Ichigo grinned and pulled Toshiro off his feet and into his arms, just as his father normally did to the young prodigy.

"Kurosaki-" Toshiro growled.

"I'm hugging my baby brother," Ichigo laughed, his arms tightening a little, "I always wanted a little brother and look what happened; I got stuck with sisters."

Karin kicked the strawberry male in the shin and huffed, causing the eighteen year old to laugh loudly. Toshiro wiggled out of the hold and Ichigo grinned before turning and following Yuzu's trail up the stairs. Thankfully Karin didn't hug him, but she did high five him and ruffle his hair before she left.

"I always wanted little brother too," the raven haired girl winked.

Toshiro frowned; he was technically much older but neither his mother nor any of the Kurosaki's seemed to count 'technically', it was all about physical appearance to them, but even then, he wasn't much younger on a physical scale, three or four years at most and he'd known Karin since she was eleven and the same height as him. It was unfair that they got to grow and he didn't.

"Don't worry, kid," Isshin slung an arm over his shoulder and began to guide him towards the stairs too, "You'll get used to having three older siblings."

Frowning deeper, Toshiro wondered what his former captain might have meant. The white haired prodigy didn't have any older siblings – _that he knew about_ – and he wasn't related to the Kurosaki's.

"Now, I better get you to bed," Isshin continued, ignoring the questioning look Toshiro was throwing his way, "I'm already in your mother's bad books, I don't want her to see me keeping you up much later."

Toshiro would have preferred to wait until Rangiku had returned so he could check that she was okay but he didn't want to see her and Isshin argue anymore – it had been scary enough watching them in the dining room when Yoruichi had first arrive. Toshiro hated seeing them fight, especially now given how close they'd gotten. Isshin was like a father – and a much better alternative to his biological one – and the young genius found himself wanting to spend more time with the doctor. Spending time with Isshin was probably the thing that he was going to miss most when he returned to the Soul Society tomorrow. He hoped the man might be able to come visit now that his powers had returned.

Isshin had gone to check on Ichigo and the girls while Toshiro brushed his teeth and changed into his pyjamas. He slipped under the covers and waited for Rangiku to return; he'd left the light on so she could find her way around the room easily. However, it was Isshin who returned first and he climbed onto the bed beside Toshiro. He sat up with his back against the headboard and slung an arm around Toshiro, pulling the prodigy into his side.

No words were said but Toshiro preferred it that way. The Squad Ten Captain sunk down and curled up against his former captain, closing his eyes as he felt fingers starting to comb through his hair.

…

" _Toshiro?"_

 _The young prodigy tensed as he heard his captain's voice enter the dorm room. What was he doing here? Toshiro wasn't rostered to work until later in the day._

 _A weight settled by his feet and Toshiro rolled further onto his stomach, burying his face completely in the pillow. He didn't want Isshin to see him looking so weak. His headache throbbed as he pressed further into the pillow and he held his breath for as long as he could because he knew it would come out shaky if he released it and he didn't want to let on that he'd been crying for the best part of an hour._

" _Talk to me, Son," Isshin's voice was muffled above him, "Tell me what happened."_

 _Toshiro said nothing and heard the older man sigh before a hand was placed on his back._

" _Fourth Seat Takemiya said some of the guys next door threw rocks at you," Isshin continued, "Rangiku's beside herself with worry right now. It took all my strength to stop her bursting in here."_

" _But this is the boy's dorm?" Toshiro mumbled and almost smirked imagining the faces of all his roommates if their 'super hot' lieutenant burst in on them unexpectedly. Well, he was alone right now but normally there was always at least one other guy in the room at a time._

" _That wouldn't stop her," Isshin chuckled, "Now do you want to tell me if my fourth seat was telling me the truth or should I go punish him for lying?"_

 _Toshiro cringed; he didn't want to get Takemiya in trouble; he was one of the few officers that liked him despite his young age and higher rank._

 _Slowly, the prodigy took a deep breath and rolled over, quickly wiping away any stray tears with his thumb. He turned onto his back in his bunk and looked up into the face of his concerned captain. The older man frowned, his eyes moving straight to the bloodied scrape on the young third seat's forehead. It was true; Toshiro had been delivering an invoice to the Eleventh Division after Captain Zaraki had destroyed their part of their shared fence during a training session earlier in the week, when a couple of unseated brutes had tried to force Toshiro into fighting them. He'd refused and they'd called him an array of terrible names before eventually resorting to throwing rocks at him, one of which hit the prodigy's forehead, causing a rather nasty looking graze._

 _Isshin's warm fingers touched the edge of the shallow wound and Toshiro flinched a little as the area was still rather sensitive. The pain began to dull as his captain began muttering a healing spell and green light tinged the side of Toshiro's vision._

" _What were their names?" Isshin asked, his voice hard, "I want to see them punished for this."_

" _I don't know their names," Toshiro answered quickly._

" _Well then you can point them out."_

" _No!" Toshiro yelped, "I don't want to cause any trouble."_

" _Toshiro, if someone hurts you, I am going to punish them, whether they are in this squad or not," Isshin said sternly, "Nobody is allowed to hurt my division members, especially not my youngest, most innocent one."_

 _Toshiro looked away; he hated being the baby of the squad. Almost everyone seemed to remind him of that at every available convenience. As if his insanely white hair and disturbing teal eyes weren't obvious enough, his height and age made him even more noticeable. It made him a target to bullies and led to the word 'freak' being used to describe him on a regular basis._

 _The glowing stopped and Toshiro knew the wound was completely healed without needing to touch it. He felt a large, warm finger at the side of his eye wipe away a tear that had leaked. Another sigh followed._

" _You're not just my third seat, Toshiro," Isshin murmured, "You've become my son and I care a lot for you… Rangiku does too and we're not going to tolerate people putting you down or hurting you because we know you're not going to stand up for yourself."_

 _Toshiro felt his heart melt a little; if he ever had a choice on who he wanted his parents to be, he couldn't think of anyone better than his crazy captain and troublesome lieutenant._

…

"Is he asleep?"

"Almost."

Toshiro's ears picked up the voices and he opened his eyes to see Rangiku entering the bedroom. He was still curled up beside Isshin.

"Mum?" the prodigy mumbled, yawning and shifting onto his back.

"I'm right here, Sweetheart," Rangiku's soft voice called, "Go back to sleep, I'll be there in a second."

Toshiro was tired now so he didn't put up any argument, simply rolling over and groaning softly when Isshin's warmth and weight left the bed. He heard the two adults talking quietly for a few minutes but wasn't listening.

Eventually he heard the light flicking off and the door being closed. A moment later, Rangiku's body was pressing up behind him and he arms were winding around him, pulling him closer. His mind drifted off to the feel of her hand stroking his hair gently.

…

Despite spending all yesterday afternoon packing, Rangiku was running around the place asking Toshiro if they'd forgotten anything.

The young prodigy had left his gigai and held Hyorinmaru in his hands, since strapping it to his back was still too painful with his wound and he was about to use it to open the Senkaimon anyway. He was looking forward to seeing Unohana to get the wound healed properly so he could return to training and catch up on his paperwork without the dull pain and discomfort.

"Okay, I think we have everything now," Rangiku huffed, joining him and the Kurosaki's in the living room, ready for their departure.

It was quite early and Ichigo and the girls were dressed for school.

"Okay kids, say goodbye to our guests," Isshin murmured.

Yuzu hugged him tightly before she moved on to Rangiku and Karin hugged him too; it wasn't tight but nevertheless it was a hug and if he wasn't so shocked she was actually hugging him, he would have hugged her back too. Ichigo had given Rangiku a hug before crushing Toshiro in his arms once more, although this time the substitute soul reaper had let him keep his feet on the ground.

The same could not be said for the teenager's father, who picked the prodigy up the moment Ichigo's arms were clear. Isshin placed him on his hip like a toddler and Toshiro frowned, opening his mouth to protest the uncomfortable and frankly quite weird position, when Isshin pressed a kiss to his forehead, to the little scar that was left behind from the Eleventh Division soldier's rocks.

"I've loved having you back, Toshiro," Isshin murmured, brushing a bit of hair out of the prodigy's eyes, "And I want you to remember you always have a father here if you need one."

Toshiro's eyes widened involuntarily as the words processed in his mind. _A father…_

Before he could form an intelligent response, he was being returned to the ground. He watched, completely dumbstruck, as Isshin then stepped forward to kiss Rangiku too, except this time it wasn't on the forehead… it was on the _lips!_

"Oh my," was Yuzu's response.

"About bloody time," Karin commented dryly.

Toshiro glanced up at Ichigo to see what the strawberry thought of their parents kissing in front of them. The substitute caught his eye and grinned.

"I guess I'm okay with it," he shrugged.

Toshiro turned back to see Isshin and Rangiku separate, both of them smiling stupidly.

"Yeah, me too," Toshiro mumbled.

The two parents had the decency to blush as the turned and saw their four children staring at them with a variety of facial expressions. Isshin returned to his kids and Toshiro joined his mother, opening the Senkaimon with his sword. They waved at the Kurosaki's one last time before entering the gates

Rangiku's hand found his and squeezed tightly; it was time to go home, and it really would be home now that Toshiro could finally be with his mother.

…

 **Soz I've been so absent, please forgive me with a review xoxo**

 **Also this was the last full chapter! The next is a small epilogue.**


	7. Epilogue: First Date

Epilogue: First Date

Toshiro watched, mildly amused, as his mother flew around the room in a wild panic, two different shoes in her right hand and a make-up bag clutched tightly in her left.

"Where's my red lipstick?" the strawberry blonde muttered quickly as she dropped onto her knees to check under the couch.

"It's behind your ear," Toshiro supplied, smirking to himself.

Rangiku frowned and felt behind her ear, looking surprised to be pulling back her cylinder of bright red lipstick. The prodigy rolled his eyes; Rangiku always tucked things behind her ear if she knew she might need them later, usually it was pens or chopsticks but lipstick wasn't much of a step up.

"Oh," the Squad Thirteen Lieutenant murmured as she got to her feet, "Okay, now where's my purse?"

The young prodigy shrugged and returned back to his book. Tonight was his mother and Isshin's first date; they were going to dinner and a movie in the World of the Living and Toshiro would be staying with Ichigo and his sisters while they were out. The Squad Ten Captain had made a point of letting his mother know that he was in no need of a babysitter as he was a capable captain who had lived alone in his quarters for many years prior to her knocking out the wall and making their quarters one big living area. She had chuckled and thankfully agreed that he was too responsible to need a babysitter, but that he should still come with her to the Kurosaki's place because Ichigo missed him and wanted to introduce him to a movie called 'How To Train Your Dragon'… well, if Ichigo missed him, he hardly wanted to let the substitute soul reaper down.

"Are you ready, Toshiro?" Rangiku's voice called from her bedroom, "Don't forget to pack your toothbrush and pyjamas."

"I thought you said we weren't staying the night?" Toshiro frowned.

"Well it depends on how late Isshin and I return home," she answered, "And Ichigo's got strict instructions to put you to bed at the same time as the girls at nine."

"I don't need a babysitter," the prodigy frowned, "Or a bed time."

"You do need a bed time because you're working full time in a physically and mentally straining job," was the well-rehearsed answer Toshiro received every single night, "Consider yourself lucky, apparently Ichigo and his sisters had to go to bed at eight when they were your age."

Toshiro groaned; for the millionth time, he was older than all three of them! By a lot! In fact, he was older than all three of their ages combined and doubled, but it was all about physical ages to them. At this rate, Ichigo and the twins would grandparents before he hit his teens.

It made the prodigy wonder about the future of Rangiku and Isshin's relationship. Isshin had been born in the Soul Society like Toshiro had and his aging had been a very slow process until he lost his powers. During the past twenty years he had aged as a human would to match that of his wife and children, but now that his powers had returned, Toshiro had to wonder if he was now a full on soul reaper again with a delayed aging time. He had a gigai, as did Ichigo, so did that technically make him a soul again? Toshiro decided he would take some time to investigate this further over the weekend. Ideally, if Isshin was back to a regular soul reaper then his aging would not affect Rangiku and they could have a normal, long term relationship – they could even get married – but if Isshin was still aging like a human, then their relationship would be over once Isshin grew too old or died. It was a bit of a 'lose-lose' situation, because where his slow aging would be good for Rangiku and Toshiro, it was not good on his children who would out-grow him in a matter of years.

"Okay, I am ready," Rangiku huffed as she exited the bedroom.

"You've still got curlers in your hair," Toshiro murmured without even glancing up from his book.

He smirked at the token shriek and sound of Rangiku scampering away to check the nearest mirror.

Rangiku had been nervous for days since Isshin had called to ask her out, and Toshiro had found the whole thing hilarious. His mother was normally such a confident woman but apparently going on a date with her old boss was a big deal.

"Hey Mum?" Toshiro called out, eyes twinkling with mischief.

"What is it, Toshiro?" Rangiku asked, re-entering the living room, her hair now curler-less and in loose waves that cascaded over her shoulders.

"Will Captain Shiba become my new step dad?" the little captain asked, innocently blinking up at her.

"Well I… it's, uhh… it's a bit more complicated than that," Rangiku flushed.

"But will you kiss on the date?" Toshiro continued, projecting his most child-like expression, "Isn't that what happens on dates?"

The reaction was priceless.

Rangiku's cheeks went bright red, her eyes bulged and her words lost all coherency. Toshiro stifled a chuckle and a grin and tilted his head as if confused by the reaction he was getting to a perfectly innocent question.

"W-what? I-I don't think that… that-that's an appropriate question," Rangiku stammered, "It's f-far too early t-to tell something like that! We've just started… I mean, this is only our f-first. No more questions, okay. Now, have you packed your toothbrush like I asked?"

"Yes, yes," Toshiro muttered, standing up and picking up his little pack.

He didn't dare tell Rangiku but he'd been hoping for a sleepover the whole time so he had packed his toothbrush and his pyjama's earlier that day. He liked spending time with Ichigo and the girls; it was almost like having friends his own age (not that they were anywhere near his own age) and almost like having siblings.

"Come on then," Rangiku held a hand out to him, "I'm already late."

Toshiro picked up his zanpakuto on his way over to her; they'd been granted permission to go back and forth to visit the Kurosaki's whenever they please, largely because the Head Captain thought it was important that the child prodigy had a wide circle of support and friendship. Toshiro certainly wasn't complaining; he liked how his friendship and family circle had grown. Slowly he was beginning to realise it was okay for him to open up to the people he trusts and it was also okay for him to be kid and have fun every once in a while. Both Squad Ten and Squad Thirteen had been supportive of the lieutenant swap, and in fact, many of Toshiro's division members had expressed how glad they were that Rangiku was his mother – apparently they often worried their captain was put under too much stress for his age. Toshiro was glad too; finally, he could crawl into her lap after a hard day and let her sing him to sleep without being ashamed of it.

"Mum?" Toshiro reached for her hand as he pulled out his blade to open the Senkaimon.

"Hmm?"

"You look very pretty," he shrugged.

He could practically feel his mother's smile as she leant down to kiss his forehead.

…

 **UGH LOVE, GROSS.**

 **I'm kidding of course (I'm not). WELLLPP that's that, sorry it took me so long to update this tiny little epilogue. I forgot? I've been busy okay :'(**

 **Thank you to everyone who read and especially those who review, it really means a lot to me xD**


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